Another Squirrel in Town
by never2oldforcartoons
Summary: When SpongeBob meets Mandy Tails, a squirrel new to Bikini Bottom, they quickly become excellent friends. When Sandy and Mandy meet, they just might become so much more. But, will Mandy's sorted past destroy their chances at happiness and the very foundation of Bikini Bottom? A romance that spirals into action. Sandy/OC and some SpongeBob/Squidward (establishing) [Slash fic]
1. Chapter 1

**Another Squirrel in Town  
><strong>*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Summation:_ When SpongeBob meets Mandy Tails, a squirrel new to Bikini Bottom, they quickly become excellent friends. When Sandy and Mandy meet, they just might become so much more. But, will Mandy's sorted past destroy their chances at happiness and the very foundation of Bikini Bottom? Can two squirrels truly find something special under the sea, or will secrets and circumstances tear them apart? A romance that spirals into action. Sandy/OC and some SpongeBob/Squidward (establishing)  
><em>Genre:_ Romance, humor, and drama that leads to action and suspense  
><em>Rating:_ General K+ (Some __vaguely__ suggestive language and scenes)  
><em>Pairings:_ Sandy/OC (Mandy Tails), SpongeBob/Squidward, Plankton/Karen, some other mini pairs  
><em>A/N: _This __**is**__ a __slash fic__ with f/f and m/m_

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><em><strong>One: Stranger Squirrel<strong>_

The Kelp Forrest. It was an eerie place to wander during the day, but it had an even spookier atmosphere at dusk. The dull glow caught the silhouette of Sandy Cheeks as she packed her scientific equipment. After a long day of research and testing her latest invention, a contraption able to harness oxygen from kelp, the Texan was ready for a Krabby Patty and a visit with her favorite sponge and starfish.

That's when she saw it.

It was only a flutter in the corner of her eye, but it was definitely movement. The light was fading fast, yet she tracked the shadow with her vision. A figure stood on a rock face above her, and it moved in slow and calculated strokes. It was a form of tai chi, but that didn't interest Sandy nearly as much as the figure's outline.

The suit looked exactly like hers in the dark.

"What in tarnation…" she mumbled and decided to go in for a closer look.

By the time she scaled half of the stone, the figure vanished into the cover of night. Disconcerted, Sandy gathered her things and tried to shake the sighting. Maybe she only imagined it. After all, it'd be unlikely that another squirrel would settle in Bikini Bottom. The chances of that had to be next to nothing, right? She laughed at her vivid imagination and wandered towards the Krusty Krab without a second thought.

Mandy Tails walked in the opposite direction towards her house.

The following afternoon, SpongeBob's laugh echoed through all of Bikini Bottom. Patrick's low chuckle mingled with the noise as the game continued. They both wore floral-printed scarves on their eyes like blindfolds, and they scampered about town without a second thought. Whoever ran into something first lost the game. So far, they had only caused three boat accidents and disturbed two playgrounds and the snail park.

Compared to last time, that was an improvement.

Finally, SpongeBob smacked face-first into a rock. Patrick heard the collision and removed the scarf in celebration. "I win! I win!"

"Well played, my friend," SpongeBob giggled and rearranged his jumbled facial features. "How far did we get this time?"

Patrick swept the landscape and pointed at a landmark in the distance. "There's Sandy's house!"

"Wow, we must have gone in circles to get here," SpongeBob scratched his head, as they started near the Treedome in the first place. "Let's go see her! Maybe we can all go jellyfishing!"

Chasing each other and tripping over coral and rocks, the duo awkwardly rolled and stumbled to the glass of the Treedome. They pressed their faces to the glass, but they didn't see Sandy anywhere. Patrick decided that it'd be best to continuously knock louder and louder until she answered the door. While he banged away, SpongeBob watched for activity.

"I don't see her, Patrick. Maybe she isn't home."

Suddenly, they heard the door squeak. How had she gotten to the door without SpongeBob seeing her through the glass? The sponge didn't dwell on this inconsistency. Instead, he excitedly joined Patrick at the door. As the entrance swung open, both boys gasped and leapt backwards in shock and awe.

Sandy looked _different_. It was obvious that a squirrel stood before them, but everything else wasn't right. This mammal had grey fur. The suit was bright orange with a peanut decal sewn to a breast pocket. This round helmet didn't have any decorations, such as the flower on Sandy's. What could have happened to their Texan friend? She looked fine the night before…

"What happened, Sandy? Are you sick? You look so peaked!" SpongeBob dramatically cried.

"I think—" the new squirrel started to speak, but her strange accent caused Patrick to panic.

"Stranger squirrel! This isn't Sandy, SpongeBob! It can't be with that face and that horrible voice. This squirrel must have eaten Sandy and taken over her house!"

Since SpongeBob couldn't think of a different explanation, he had to agree with his friend. "Oh dear Neptune! We have to get Sandy out of that thing!"

Both of them piled on top of the squirrel and tried to pump on the rodent's stomach. With ease, the squirrel sent them both flying backwards. Dusting her suit, she raised her hands in a defensive position. "Now, listen—"

Powerfully, Patrick went running towards her like a linebacker. She simply side stepped him and he ran into the interior door. SpongeBob, upset that his pink pal had blacked out from the blow, let out a war cry and used his karate. With one hand, the squirrel fought him off with a bored expression. He tired himself out, and Patrick came into consciousness. The pink star attempted to tackle the squirrel from behind, so she effortlessly turned and caught him in her arms.

"Let go!" Patrick flailed. "SpongeBob, it's going to eat me like it ate Sandy!"

"Listen, I didn't eat anyone," the squirrel finally spoke. Gently, Patrick was released and the squirrel took a moment. "I don't even know who _Sandy _is. This isn't her house. It's my house. I'm Mandy Tails. I just moved here a week ago. I'm from Massachusetts, a scientist, that's all. I'm not a monster."

"But, this _is_ Sandy's house," SpongeBob argued.

Mandy shook her head. "I copied the look of a dome across town. It's literally just the outside of it. An image, nothing more. I didn't want my house to stand out too much. I'm sorry if I startled you. Really, I promise that I haven't eaten anyone."

"We can't trust a stranger squirrel!" Patrick declared.

SpongeBob sighed. "Patrick, I guess she seems okay to me. We're sorry about all that. We just thought that you were a vicious murderer with an appetite for flesh."

"That's okay. An honest mistake," Mandy lightly smiled and extended a hand. "Truce?"

"Absolutely," SpongeBob took her hand with a hearty shake. "I'm SpongeBob SquarePants. This is my best buddy, Patrick Star. Welcome to Bikini Bottom!"

The squirrel grinned at the friendly sponge. "Thanks. So, I've meant to find somebody to talk to about the town. Do you know any good restaurants around here? I love to cook, I finished making lunch a few minutes ago actually, but it'd be nice to go out for dinner tonight."

"Boy, do I! I'm a fry cook at the Krusty Krab, and it is so delicious. Best food _ever_. You have to come by!"

"Excuse me," Patrick dryly interrupted. "Did you say that you made lunch?"

Mandy chuckled and motioned to her house. "Come on in. I have enough food for everyone."

It just so happened that Mandy had a few extra suits in the entryway that could hold water as well as air, so the sea creatures suited up and followed her inside. She gestured to her house with a modest smile. "I call this place the TARDIS: tree adaptations radically developed inside seas."

SpongeBob and Patrick realized that this was not an ordinary dome. Oh no. This was bigger on the inside, and it didn't resemble the faux exterior at all. The welcome area was a beautiful autumn scene with trees, a stream, and a Zen garden. Astonished, the boys took in the surroundings as Mandy shed her suit. The squirrel in plaid boxers and a ripped tank top began the brief tour.

All four seasons were represented in separate biospheres, and the boys found the Winter Biosphere the most amusing. A shiny button started a snow machine, and a pond coated with ice served as a skating rink. The spring area was nothing but blooming trees and a fountain, so the sponge and star were bored by the beauty and ready for the warmth of summer.

Her living area was inside a giant tree in summer just like Sandy's, so they gathered in her quaint kitchen for sandwiches. SpongeBob raved about her cooking for at least ten minutes before Patrick noticed screens fuzzing in the next room. "Mandy, what's with the TVs? Can you watch all the channels at once? Oh, oh—can I come over and watch them all at once too?"

"Oh," Mandy uncomfortably laughed. "Those are security feeds. You know. To watch over my house."

"Why would you need that? Bikini Bottom is really safe, you know," SpongeBob commented as he reached for his fourth sandwich.

"It makes me feel safer. Anyone want some chips?" Mandy left the table and reached for something in the pantry, revealing a long scar on her side.

Patrick, again, panicked. "There's a zipper! She isn't who she says she is! She's hiding in someone else's skin!"

"It's not a zipper. It's a scar," Mandy assured him. "I was hurt at work a while ago."

"What'd you do?" SpongeBob wondered.

"A lot of things. I'm just glad to work for myself, collecting research on currents and the impact of human interference on sea life, that kind of thing. So, anyways, I have some dessert ready. Anyone want some after lunch?"

The boys cheered and they continued their lunch without any other serious questions. SpongeBob and Patrick quickly began to like and trust the new squirrel in town, and it appeared that she could become a great friend. Mandy genuinely enjoyed the company of the odd sea critters as well.

However, this squirrel harbored a secret that was bound to cause trouble…and maybe even destruction. Time would reveal everything. Perhaps too much. But, for now life could go forward without a single complication. Well, there was one little detail that _could_ complicate things.

The inevitable meeting of Sandy Cheeks and Mandy Tails.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Two: Surprise the Squirrels**_

It was perfect. SpongeBob began to show Mandy Tails around Bikini Bottom and introduce her to the local pastimes. She was particularly fond of jellyfishing, so SpongeBob gave her a net as a house warming gift. Since Mandy had experience from a summer job as a chef, she spent time with SpongeBob in the kitchen of her house. So, she gave him a lucky spatula from her collection. Though it hadn't been long, it was absolutely clear that these two creatures had become the closest friends.

Patrick was also very fond of their new mammalian friend, but he found that he was often too busy to join in their games. (He had an upcoming powernap competition, so naturally he wanted all of the practice that he could get.) But, today SpongeBob and Patrick had some uninterrupted playtime alone in SpongeBob's pineapple.

"You'll never guess what Mandy showed me yesterday," SpongeBob enthusiastically announced while they colored pictures. "She showed me how to make a _veggie patty. _It's like a Krabby Patty, but it's made from vegetables! I think that I might make one for Mr. Krabs to see if he'd add it to the menu. I am so excited. We'll call it the _Mandy Patty_, for Mandy of course, if Mr. Krabs likes it. She still hasn't been to the Krusty Krab because of all that science stuff, but I made her a Krabby Patty and she loved it. Well, of course she did. It's a Krabby Patty. Anyway, you'll have to try this veggie thing. It is truly ah-mazing…"

Patrick thoughtfully grunted and scratched his chin. "You've spent a lot of time with this Mandy person. She's a squirrel, right?"

"Yes."

"And she's a girl."

"Yeah."

"And she's a scientist."

SpongeBob wasn't sure where Patrick was going with this. "Yep. What's so important about all that?"

"She's like the _new _Sandy. Sandy's a squirrel. She's a girl. She's a scientist. Then, there's Mandy. All new and smart and fun. Do you know what I think? I think that they'd be _best friends_!"

"You're right, Pat!" SpongeBob readily agreed. He hadn't thought about getting the squirrels together just yet, as he was busy getting to know Mandy himself. "We have to introduce them…and it should be a surprise!"

Patrick grinned with a single tooth shining. "Yeah, that'd be great. They'd be so shocked and happy. It'd be like you meeting a new and awesome sponge named…SpongeCarl! How neat would that be?"

"Totally neat! It's all settled. I'm going to set it up. Mandy won't know that I invited Sandy, and Sandy won't know that I invited Mandy. Then, _surprise! _Meeting another squirrel under the sea. Perfect. Oh, and then we can all play together! It's like the most amazing idea."

"You said it, buddy. It's going to be so great."

The duo buzzed with excitement as they played together for another hour. Once Patrick left for his daily powernap practice, SpongeBob got on the phone to Sandy first. He invited her to the museum over the weekend, and she readily agreed. When he called Mandy and invited her to the same exhibit, she had to decline since she had a research project to babysit. Maybe getting them in the same place at the same time wasn't going to be as easy as he thought.

It wasn't.

After three failed attempts to get them together, SpongeBob _finally _scheduled a time for jellyfishing. The day that they were all supposed to go to Jellyfish Fields, Sandy called SpongeBob and canceled. A science magazine wanted to interview her about her latest invention. Frustrated, SpongeBob tried again. This time, they were set to go sandboarding together. The day that they were supposed to go to Sand Mountain, Mandy had to cancel. The unfamiliar climates of Bikini Bottom were rough on Mandy's immune system, and she had finally given into a severe cold.

SpongeBob was losing his mind.

With frayed nerves, he only felt comfort as he stood at his grill in the Krusty Krab. He tried to think of a way to guarantee that they would meet, but he wasn't sure how he could pull it off. When service slowed, SpongeBob decided to seek advice from his favorite octopus. He poked Squidward on the shoulder through the window, and Squidward tried to ignore it.

"_Squidward, Squidward, Squidward, Squidy, SquidSquid, Squidward—_"

"What?!"

"Hi. So, I need some advice. I know that you'll be glad to help—"

"Don't care," Squidward disinterestedly hummed as he returned to flipping through a magazine at the register.

SpongeBob slyly grinned. "Don't you care just a _little bit_?"

"Let me think about it," Squidward deadpanned without glancing upwards. "Nope."

"Okay," they both knew that SpongeBob was going to keep talking anyway. "How would you get two people in the same place at the same time without telling them they'll both be there?"

"I don't know. If you can't tell them who's really going to be there, tell them someone _else_ will be there. That'll hold them accountable. Can I go back to reading now?"

"That's a great idea! I don't want to lie, though. Squidward, would you come with me and my squirrel friends to a movie?"

The octopus laughed. "No way. Take that pink oaf with you."

"Patrick's busy with a powernap contest. Besides, I want _you _to come with me. Please? I'll buy you popcorn and hold your hand if you get scared in the theater…"

Luckily for Squidward, they were interrupted by a customer and he didn't have to stutter through a response. While SpongeBob worked, he thought and thought about his options. But, he genuinely didn't know what to do. Somehow, some way, the squirrels had to meet. Naturally, the sponge hadn't thought of just telling them to get together without using some fancy plot. No, he was too excited by the idea of a big reveal. As he exited the Krusty Krab after his shift, Plankton shook a fist from the ground.

"I'm going to get the formula, SpongeBob, and you won't stop me! Not this time!"

"That's nice, Plankton."

As SpongeBob walked away, Plankton irately followed him. "No, you're supposed to play along! Say something snappy or actually try to stop me! It's boring if you don't care."

"I'm sorry, Plankton. I have a lot on my mind. Have you ever had a bunch of plans that never worked out?"

"I'm not going to dignify that with a response."

SpongeBob sighed to himself. "I want to get my friends together, so they'll meet for the first time, but I want it to be a surprise. I can't get the timing right."

"Look, kid. Don't give up. That's my motto. Now, I command you to say something cheeky so I can get the secret formula and destroy you and everything related to the Krusty Krab!"

"You got it," SpongeBob happily agreed now that he felt better. "You'll never steal the formula, Plankton! Mr. Krabs will always keep you out of the Krusty Krab just like employee rights and free refills!"

Giddily, Plankton clapped his hands and darted towards the Krusty Krab. (He was tossed back to the Chum Bucket within one minute.) With Plankton's advice and the idea Squidward gave him, SpongeBob decided to put together one more plan. Something told him that the squirrels would be the best of friends, just as Patrick had said. On an instinctual level, perhaps the sponge knew more than that. Maybe he knew what could actually happen.

Just like what was happening at Goo Lagoon at that very moment.

"Hey," Mandy Tails shouted from her place beside the lazy waves at Goo Lagoon.

From her spot measuring currents, she could hear the commotion further up the beach. A group of despicable teenage sharks had surrounded a small fish child. The child had a sparkly purple balloon, and the sharks were taking turns passing it around the circle—just beyond the child's reach. Crying, the little boy reached for his balloon to no avail. Mandy was not going to let this continue.

"Hey, you thugs, knock it off," she threatened as she approached the crew.

"What are you gonna do about it, little girl?" the largest shark cackled in her face.

She kicked him in the gut.

From a distance, Larry Lobster watched the fight and didn't do a thing. The sharks were always causing trouble, and he figured that they needed to be taught a lesson. However, he assumed that this squirrel was Sandy. So, when Sandy wandered over to him, she was there to surf for a bit, the lobster was startled to see her.

"How are you here _and_ there, Sandy?"

"What? There's only one of me, and she's right in front of you."

The lobster pointed to the massive fight. "Look over there."

Sandy watched this squirrel in the orange suit spin, kick, punch, throw, and batter the sharks—some twice her size—as if it were nothing. This rodent had an urban and vicious way about her hits, but the expression on her face was of gentle determination. Sandy considered leaping over there, but she was too enthralled by this stranger's skills to move an inch.

Once the sharks were down, the child's balloon was floating away, so Mandy leapt between umbrellas and lifeguard towers. With a mighty jump, Mandy sailed towards the string of the balloon.

She caught it.

"Give me your hand, buddy," Mandy told the little boy as she appeared with the balloon safely in her hand. The kid stuck out his hand and she carefully tied it to his wrist. After checking the knots, Mandy smiled. "If they give you trouble again, you tell them that the squirrel will be back."

"Thanks," the child shyly grinned.

Briefly, Mandy glanced to see a large lobster staring…and another squirrel. A very attractive squirrel. Mandy's pulse flickered. Sandy's lungs froze. Instant attraction. With a fast and anxious stride, Mandy disappeared through the maze of dunes and tourists. Sandy, in a daze from the stranger's gaze and strong fight, decided to chase her. When she realized that Mandy was long gone, she went to the kid with the balloon.

"Howdy. Do you happen to know who that squirrel was?"

"Don't know. But, I wanna see her again. She's awesome."

"Yeah…" Sandy trailed off and looked around. "I know what you mean."


	3. Chapter 3

_**Three: They Meet**_

"SpongeBob, are you nervous about something?" Squidward questioned from his place at the cash register. It was several days after SpongeBob had thought of a plan.

"Yeah. How could you tell?"

"You've been clinging to me all day."

SpongeBob realized that he was hugging Squidward's back in anticipation. It was all set. Both squirrels confirmed that they could make it. Though Squidward removed the sponge from his shoulders, SpongeBob rebounded like a boomerang. Sighing, Squidward gave up and didn't bother any longer. The yellow man still held on for dear life.

"Oh, I wanted to thank you," SpongeBob remembered with a wide smile. "I took your advice and now Sandy and Mandy are finally meeting! It's my _brilliant_ plan in action. They'll be here any minute. So, I am a bit nervous. I hope they'll like each other…"

"What exactly is this 'plan' of yours?"

"I said that they had to come to the Krusty Krab today because _someone_ would be here that I wanted them to meet."

Squidward blinked. "That's it? That's your supposedly _brilliant_ plan? Why didn't you just do that in the first place?"

"I didn't think of it, but you did. Thanks a lot, Squidward. I owe you one."

The sponge tightly hugged his shoulders while he froze in place. Thankfully, Sandy wandered through the door and SpongeBob left the octopus to greet her. Squidward still felt the sponge on his back, but it was Sandy's turn to freeze under his tight embrace. He held on a bit too snuggly and a bit too long for Sandy's liking.

"SpongeBob, it'd be nice if I could breathe and all," Sandy smiled and discreetly loosened his grasp finger by finger. "So, what's all this about someone for me to meet? I've been more excited than an ant at a picnic all day."

"They aren't here yet. Why don't you take a seat and I'll make some patties?"

She nodded and plopped on the nearest seat. "Sounds good to me."

"Great! I'll be right back."

Just as SpongeBob finished cooking and brought the food to Sandy's table, Mandy walked through the door. Sandy stared. Mandy gazed. Sandy blinked. Mandy smirked. Sandy swallowed. Mandy knew. Yes, the electricity was magnetic between them. They remembered seeing each other at the beach, and Sandy knew that this squirrel had to be the shadow in Kelp Forest. Finally, they could talk…if they could catch their breath.

SpongeBob anxiously motioned to Mandy without knowing what was happening between his friends. "Sandy, this is Mandy. Mandy, this is Sandy. Mandy is new to town and we've become good pals. I figured you two should get to know each other. It'd be great to all hang out together!"

Simply, Mandy extended her hand. "Hello, it's nice to meet you. I'm Mandy Tails."

"Howdy," Sandy greeted as they locked hands and eyes. Time seemed to stop. Sparks seemed warm their fingers. It took a moment for Sandy to continue. "I'm Sandy Cheeks. Nice to meet you too."

"Do you mind if I sit with you?"

"What?" the Texan distractedly answered as she managed to tear her eyes from Mandy's face. "Sit with me? Of course you can. It's no mind."

While Mandy sat down, SpongeBob excitedly clapped and ran to make another patty or two. As he cooked and Squidward read an art magazine, the squirrels had a chance to converse.

"I'm going to take a wild guess here, but I assume that you're a scientist. I mean, unless you're just a really smart rodent with a taste for seafood or a sea urchin hidden in a squirrel's body, I can't imagine why or how you'd live down here."

"You bet I'm a scientist. I'm here studyin' and inventin' things mostly. What kind of scientist are you?"

"I'm a researcher. Ecology and oceanography," Mandy affirmed with a tiny smirk. "Are you from Texas?"

Sandy, slightly stunned by Mandy's accuracy, had to smirk in return. "You must be good with accents. Where in the world are you from? You sound like you got water in your helmet and up your nose."

"I get that a lot. I'm from Massachusetts," there was brief pause, so Mandy thought of a way to keep the conversation moving. She loved to hear that Texan drawl. "You know, I've been by your house a few times. If I had known that another squirrel lived in there, I would have knocked and introduced myself."

"Who did you think lived in the Treedome down here?"

"I don't know. A chipmunk. Maybe a rat. Nothing as delightful as you."

Grinning, Sandy shrugged at the compliment. "Aw, you know. Just another squirrel. Living in the sea. Nothing special. So…what kind of research are you doing?"

"Studying ocean currents and human impact on sea life. You?"

"Whatever I feel like doin' these days. And, I just like it down here. Have you had much time to look 'round these parts?"

"SpongeBob and Patrick have been my welcoming committee. I have to say that Bikini Bottom is happening place. Great for my research," Mandy could see it in Sandy's eyes. Disappointment. Sandy meant to use her question as an invitation for a night on the town, but Mandy hadn't realized it until now. She wasn't about to disappoint Sandy any further. "But, I didn't get a close look at everything. The boys are—how can I put this—oh right. _Spastic_. I'd love a proper tour…if you wouldn't mind being my guide."

Sandy discreetly perked up at the offer. "Really?"

"Definitely. You seem like the kind of squirrel I'd like to know better."

"Shucks, you're just trying to make me blush."

"Is it working?"

Slowly, Squidward lowered his magazine and looked at the women. He knew that expression inside their helmets, and he could see the grey stranger slip just a bit closer to Sandy. "Um, SpongeBob?"

"Hmm?" SpongeBob questioned as he whipped up a large batch of patties.

"That new squirrel…how well do you know her?"

"I like to think that I know her pretty well. Why?"

Squidward watched Mandy lean forward with a whispered joke. Sandy laughed and moved even closer to the orange suit. "Oh…no reason, SpongeBob. None at all."

After swapping stories for nearly five minutes, Mandy started another tale through deep chuckles. "So, my younger sister—Kandy—came home with a skunk and ten piercings, not to mention what she did to her tail. My parents couldn't get through to her, which meant that it was up to me to get her back on track. I paid off this skunk from New Jersey to act like my boyfriend and put in a bunch of false earrings. Sisters don't want to be _anything _like each other at that age, so she decided that it wasn't _cool_ to be rebellious anymore. Not since I had done it too. Now, she's living under a Catholic church and bringing wafer crumbs to orphaned mice."

Sandy laughed and pointed with an accusatory finger. "C'mon now. You made that up."

"I did not. You can't be serious about your twin brother and that rodeo."

"I'm tellin' you. He was thrown clear 'cross Austin County. Brought a whole new meaning to a _flying squirrel_," she quietly laughed and leaned forward on her elbows with sultry eyes. "That was the same rodeo that I was in. Won first place in every roping category. I can lasso just about anything, you know."

"I'd believe it. You've already roped me."

Flushed, Sandy averted her gaze. "I reckon you're the fastest smooth talker in the East. You must have a line of squirrels waitin' for you back home."

"Oh yeah. It wraps around Boston three times. Do you have a line waiting for you?"

"You know it. It goes through every county in Texas."

"Now, I don't believe that," Mandy playfully continued their little game. "That line sounds way too short for you. I bet it runs clear across Mexico."

Squidward made a face and shook his head. "That is just too sweet. I'm going to be sick…"

"Well," Sandy nervously chuckled. "I have a confession to make. I saw you at Goo Lagoon the other day, fightin' a group of sharks. I wanted to talk to you, but you were gone by the time I tried to catch you."

"I saw you too. I would have liked to meet you."

"Why didn't you stick around?"

"I don't know. I got scared."

Sandy found this amusing. "You got scared of chattin' with me, but you weren't scared of taking on a bunch of sharks double your size?"

"I know how to use my fists. I don't always know how to use my words. Especially around pretty women. How am I doing so far?"

"Honestly? Not bad. Not bad at all…"

For another few minutes, the squirrels continued to talk. Glances were exchanged. Timid smiles shined. Flirtatious body language flourished. Silly remarks were traded. Eventually, they were interrupted when SpongeBob had a chance to stop cooking and bring more food to his squirrel friends.

When he arrived, they were giggling, so he happily twirled about. "You like each other! Oh, we are going to have the best times! And I was worried. Me. Worried. Please, you two are perfect for each other."

"SpongeBob, quit kidding…" Sandy brightly reddened while Mandy grinned.

"We get along famously, yellow man. Thanks for introducing us. We'll have to spend a lot of time together," Mandy discreetly glanced at the other squirrel with a slight wink.

"Great! I bet you'd have so much fun going out to dinner and taking long walks on the beach and having sleepovers and…" SpongeBob paused at the strange expressions on their faces. Dinners, long walks, and sleepovers? Sounded like typical dates with really great endings. Well, the girls couldn't hide their blushes. The sponge could tell he misspoke somehow, but the amorous undertones didn't occur to the innocent fellow. "…am I missing something?"

Squidward's laugh honked all over the Krusty Krab. "Are you missing something? What an understatement…"

"We'll think on it, SpongeBob," Sandy tried to maintain her composure. "We're both real preoccupied with our research."

"Oh, I get it. You're both so busy with all that science. Well, we have to go jellyfishing when everyone is off work. Speaking of that, I have to get back to my grill. Bye for now, buddies!"

As soon as SpongeBob was in the kitchen, Mandy checked the time. "I have to collect data from my equipment, but I'll see you around?"

"Sure thing, Mandy. I'd like that."

"Great. I'd like that too."

Mandy left with a vibrant smile and Sandy couldn't stop blushing. She could hear the flutter of Squidward's magazine throughout her conversation with Mandy, so she sent a glare in Squidward's direction. "You don't have to pretend, Squidward. I know you were watching like a slippery snake in tall grass."

"Watching? I don't know what you're talking about."

"Uh-huh. _Sure_ you don't."

"Right. Well, I hope that you see your girlfriend soon. I mean, _your friend_," he called after her, and he instantly hid the moment that she turned towards him.

She rolled her eyes at the terrified employee. "Thought so. Watch it, mister. I ain't afraid to rope you like a rowdy calf."

Even though the octopus did not know what she was talking about, he certainly didn't want to find out. Sandy exited the establishment, and he tried to focus on his magazine. Still, he considered those silly squirrels. Why did it bug him? It couldn't be _jealousy. _Oh no. Squidward Tentacles never felt _jealousy. _He was sophisticated, an artistic genius, a musical marvel, a man of superior tastes—he was lonely.

"_Squidward_," SpongeBob rang from the window. "Squiiiidddddwwwarrrrrdddddddddd!"

"Do you mind?" he shouted back as fury crawled up his collar. "You are the most insufferable person on this planet! What, what, _what _do you want?"

SpongeBob held out a fountain drink. "I thought you might be thirsty."

"Oh…"

Squidward stopped for a moment and realized that he felt lousy. Maybe he actually felt guilty about snapping at SpongeBob. Maybe he was jealous that Sandy and Mandy could have found something special. Maybe he was just irritated by the sponge as always. Maybe these thoughts were somehow connected. In any case, the intelligent octopus—albeit haughty and grumpy—was the only one aware of the situation.

The squirrels were bound to give into their attraction sooner or later.

Even if it could ruin everything.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Four: Three's a Crowd**_

"_Hi-ya_!" Sandy loudly echoed across Jellyfish Fields. She had just netted a jellyfish after a long chase, so she happily celebrated her grand victory. "Gotcha, little critter!"

Mandy applauded from her place sitting on a rock. "Great catch, sweet cheeks."

Though they were comfortable exchanging coy words and teasing one another, they were both afraid to pursue anything. Mandy had her own reasons for being hesitant, but Sandy was more concerned about what could go wrong. The last thing she wanted was to make things awkward in Bikini Bottom. Besides, there was another factor in this equation.

"Hi!" SpongeBob called as he darted to catch up with them. "Some weather, huh? _B-e-a-u-tiful_!"

The sponge rarely left their side, and they were both worried about what could happen if they ruined this flawless dynamic. They were like a little family beneath the waves, so what would happen if they changed things? Once someone passes the line between friendship and more, there is no going back. It can turn ugly. It can hurt like a thousand jellyfish stings. It can be absolutely wonderful. But, could it be worth the risks? Could it be worth chancing devastation?

Well, it's hard to figure that out when two people don't have any alone time.

It was driving the women mad.

"SpongeBob, why don't you check on Patrick?" Sandy gently tried to drop the hint. "We haven't seen him in a few days."

"Oh, he's fine. He's been asleep. The powernap finals are tomorrow, so he really wants to be prepared. We are going to watch his competition together, right?"

"Yeah," Mandy nodded while her patience began to crumble. "Just like we saw _Cujo: The Rabid Worm _at the movie theater together. Just like we hit every last slope on Sand Mountain together. Just like we spent a day at the lagoon together. Just like we went grocery shopping together. Just like we did our laundry together. Just like we watched the _fifteen hour_ Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy marathon. Just like—"

Sandy placed a soft hand on Mandy's shoulder. "I think that Mandy is trying to say that we've seen a lot of each other lately."

"And it's been great!" SpongeBob loudly exclaimed as he affectionately hugged his net to his chest for emphasis.

"It has," Mandy agreed while SpongeBob's innocent eyes started to get to her. "But, sometimes too much of a good thing can be a problem."

"What…what are you trying to say?" he sniffled and tears began to form.

Sandy hoped to calm the situation. "Don't get all watery eyed, SpongeBob. It's nothing personal. Everyone needs a break sometimes. And, well, we need a break."

"You don't like me anymore," SpongeBob sobbed. The sponge wasn't stupid. He had noticed how _close_ the girls seemed, and he feared that they were going to forget about him. "You like each other more than you like me, don't you?"

"What? That's not true," Mandy assured him as realization hit. "That's why you've been with us every second. You're worried that we'll leave you behind. Don't think like that, yellow man. You're still our best friend. Right, Sandy?"

"Exactly," Sandy confirmed while her hand instinctively took Mandy's fingers. "Nothin' is gonna change our friendship. We swear on my great grandpappy's uncle's roommate's sister's grave. That's an ironclad promise right there. So, do you mind if we have today apart? We'll see you tomorrow at the competition and have a good ol' time, okay?"

Feeling better, SpongeBob grinned and hugged them both. "Okay! I'm so glad that we worked this out. It's such a relief to know that everything is shiny. You are my best friends, after all. See you tomorrow, Sandy and Mandy!"

Once he left, both women breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, sweet cheeks. Here we are."

"Looks like it, Mandy. You and me…"

"Alone. Nobody for miles…"

"Yep," Sandy stopped and they both looked at one another with desire and affection. There were so many ways their afternoon could go. So many _suggestive_ places. What would they do now that they finally had time to themselves? All. Alone. Shivering in the cold air. Eyes locked…their wanton gazes demanded a decision. "Wanna see who can catch the most jellyfish in five minutes?"

"You are so on."

Sandy started a timer on her watch and the hunt began. Being the incredible Texan squirrel, Sandy leapt about and ran at top speed. Her agility was unparalleled, and her strength was unquestionable. However, she paused to view her competitor in this battle and actually felt nervous. This could be the first time she ever lost.

Mandy was the epitome of grace. She waited like a statue for opportunities, and then she struck with force and precision. Though her knowledge of tai chi was clearly in use, there was something too polished about her movements. She had to have some sort of training, and it was much more intense than average martial arts. Was there something more to this New Englander than she had disclosed?

_Beep-beep-beep._

Time.

"Color me periwinkle and call me Conway Twitty," Sandy mumbled in astonishment at the numbers. Mandy won by two jellyfish. "Well, this is a first. Looks like I've finally met my match."

"My thoughts exactly," Mandy suavely smirked as she released the jellyfish from her net.

Sandy was still bothered by Mandy's talents. There was no way that she could have learned those moves from an average trainer. "You got some sort of tricks up your sleeve, Tails. Something sneaky. Who are you really?"

"We all have pasts," Mandy swallowed and forced a smile. "I like to focus on right here and right now."

"What if right here and now ain't so great?"

"Well…" Mandy considered with a sly smirk. "I don't know. I never have that problem when I'm with you. Would you like to go for a walk with me?"

"Sure thing. Where to?"

"Ah, the location doesn't matter. It's how you get there."

Sandy tenderly smiled and tucked her arm beneath Mandy's elbow. "That's true. Saddle up. We're gonna ride off into the sunset."

While they wandered off in a random direction, SpongeBob was heading home. He ran into Squidward on the street, as Squidward was on his way to the music shop for new sheet music. The sponge exclaimed it at the top of his lungs. "Hey, Squidward! Whatcha doing?"

"If you must know, I'm going to town for new sheet music."

"Can I go with you?"

"Don't you have furry friends and a pink pal to play with?"

SpongeBob gave a cheery shrug. "Patrick's sleeping and Sandy and Mandy wanted to be alone."

"I knew it!" Squidward erupted with a smug smile. Of course those squirrels would hook up. He could see it coming from a mile away. But, the sponge stared at him strangely and he didn't feel like explaining himself. "Well. I'm going to town, and no. You can't come."

"Oh, all right. I have to feed Gary anyway. Besides, you live right next to me, so I can still get in my _Squidward time_ later tonight. I'll see you when you get back home! Bye, Squidwardddddd!"

Cringing, Squidward kept walking and thinking more and more about the irritating yellow creature. The sponge didn't leave his mind until he spotted the bright orange suit and pink flower of the squirrels. He decided it'd be amusing to eavesdrop on the pair. He was interested to know if they were dating or not, as gossip did make the town less boring. A nearby rock and plant hid him from view while they walked towards him.

"You know what I miss 'bout the surface?" Sandy softly asked while her helmet awkwardly rested on Mandy's shoulder. "Ma's pecan pie."

"I miss Uncle Brandy's peanut butter cookies. I try to make those cookies myself and they just aren't the same. Even with my training as a chef…"

"You were a chef?"

"Yeah. For a summer. Really, I had a lot of odd jobs over the years. Musician. Yoga instructor. Pet sitter. They stay with you after a while. I still play the violin, I still do yoga, and I still have a bunch of pets. Spiders. A ton of them. Weird, I know…"

Sandy stopped walking with a grin. "Ain't that something? I play guitar, teach karate, and keep odd pets. Crickets and the like."

"Seriously? Sounds like we are a perfect fit," they had moved closer and closer. Sandy's hands had a hold of Mandy's wrists. It felt like the right time. Mandy wet her lips and tried to find the courage. "So, I was wondering if…"

_Rustle._

Mandy spotted a shiny head among the rocks and nodded in its direction. Sandy glanced and rolled her eyes. Squidward. Of course. She pulled her lasso and roped him just as she warned. He yelled and carried on as she tugged him into view. They stood over him with threatening grimaces.

"What? I was only relaxing. I didn't know you were there," he squawked in desperation.

Sandy heavily sighed. "Haven't you ever seen two girl squirrels getting to know each other underwater before?"

"Um…no."

"Why were you listening in the first place?" Mandy curiously wondered of the shimmery guy.

He tried to shrug it off. "No reason."

"Gossip hound," Sandy accused. "That just ain't polite. Don't listen in and don't repeat anything. We aren't front page news, got it?"

He relented. "All right, all right. I don't know anything and I never will. Can I just ask one question?"

"What is it?" Sandy groaned with an eye roll.

"So…_girls_?"

Blushing, the Texan tightened the rope with a glare. "If you don't mind, we were talking and you're crampin' our style."

"You know what they say," Mandy decided to interject. "_Three's a crowd_. So, which way do you live?"

Squidward bobbed his head in the proper direction, so Mandy freed him and suddenly flung his body a very, very long distance. Sandy blinked at the sudden strength and excitedly hugged Mandy's side. "You got an arm, Tails. I like a little brawn. Now, what were you saying 'fore the interruption?"

"Oh. Well. I was wondering if you might like to come to my house for dinner sometime," panic suddenly gripped Mandy and she started to backpedal. "Not like. A date. Only two women having dinner together. Alone."

Loudly, Patrick bounded onto the scene. "Oh, hey! I haven't seen you in days! I just woke up and can't remember where I left my shorts. Have you seen them?"

"You're wearing them," Mandy provided as Patrick looked.

"Oh. I am. That's another mystery solved. You guys want to get ice cream? I don't have money, but I can lend you some socks if you pay."

Sandy glazed into Mandy's eyes. "Yeah. I'll take you up on that offer. We need some alone time."

Patrick had a one track mind. "So, how about that ice cream?"

Mandy put an arm around both Sandy and Patrick with a sigh. "Yes, my star friend. Ice cream it is."

"Yay! You're the best! I'll give you the socks later, Mandy."

"No, that's quite all right. Believe me."

As they went to buy some ice cream, the women were incredibly excited about their dinner, but it wasn't going to be what they expected.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Five: Sandy's Somebody**_

_Knock._

Anxiously, Mandy went to her door and began the entry sequence. Soon, Sandy appeared inside the TARDIS and shed her suit in astonishment. The place was more than she had ever expected, and it was fantastic to be in an oxygenated space other than her Treedome. More importantly, she couldn't help noticing how attractive Mandy was without her suit.

Mandy couldn't take her eyes off Sandy either.

"So, this is it. My humble house," Mandy welcomed her to the Fall Biosphere with an understated gesture. "I'll give you the tour."

After she showed the amazed Texan her layout, they wound up inside Mandy's living quarters in the summer tree. At first, things were a bit awkward. They ate the tasty dinner in an uncomfortable silence. Sandy wanted this to be a first date. Mandy wanted this to be a first date. But, it wasn't and they were finding it difficult to hide their true feelings. Eventually, they began to loosen up and talk of interests and hobbies. Laughter filled the leaves, and mouths ached from constant smiles. So far, things were going great.

Once dinner was done, Mandy showed Sandy around the interior of her summer home. They reached the spider room where all of her arachnids lived in little jars or square containers. "I rescued all of these creatures from houses. Humans were going to kill them, so I tore in there through whatever crack I could find. Freaked out the people so much that I got a chance to get the little ones to safety. Spiders are only misunderstood, you know? They do what they have to in order to survive. Don't care about how they look to others. Scary, ugly, dangerous—_they don't care_. They'll just keep moving. Living…"

"Sounds to me like you know how that goes," Sandy quietly commented as curiosity peaked.

"Maybe I do. I think that we all do on some level."

There they were. No clunky suits. No hindering helmets. Just two squirrels within inches of each other. They both knew what they desired. Mandy instinctively reached to Sandy's bare arm to trace its outline. Sandy suppressed a shiver. The feisty woman from the Lone Star State wasn't about to drag her feet any longer. It was making her crazy to wait for Mandy to take the first step, so she leaned forward with her eyes gently shut.

Mandy stepped backwards.

"How about we visit the Winter Biosphere? I'm in the mood to ice-skate. You can borrow one of my sweatshirts, if you'd like. It gets cold when I turn on the snow."

"Sure," Sandy faintly answered. She was hurt. Wounded. Mandy seemed to be so interested in her, so why did she back away? It was a painful mystery in Sandy's mind, but she didn't know how to approach the topic just yet. So, she pretended nothing was wrong. "A sweatshirt would be great."

As soon as Sandy slid into one of Mandy's Red Sox sweatshirts, they went to the Winter Biosphere and turned on the snow. Mandy passed Sandy a pair of ice-skates and they swirled around on the ice as if they were dancing. Teasingly, Mandy would fly by and tap Sandy on the shoulder. Sandy would chase her in return and eventually rustle Mandy's tail. Laughing, the game continued until Mandy tenderly caught Sandy by the wrists.

They slowly spun together in wide circles, and Sandy chose to take another risk. She lightly reached to Mandy's cheek with cautious fingers, and Mandy was clearly impacted by the contact. But, Mandy tried to recoil yet again. The tough Texan wouldn't allow it this time, so she used her exceptional strength to pull Mandy to her chest. Their noses were an inch apart. Mandy heavily sighed and lowered her forehead to Sandy's.

"Sandy…this can't be a date."

"Heck, it's already a date. Don't give me that bullpucky," she fiercely disagreed while her arms wrapped about Mandy's waist. "Aren't you sweet on me?"

"You have to ask?"

"Then, where's the problem?"

Mandy hesitated. "Can you do me a favor, sweet cheeks?"

"I s'ppose so."

"Trust me," Mandy carefully left a lingering kiss on Sandy's forehead and brushed the snow from her shoulders. "The timing isn't right. But, I'm not saying that it'll never happen."

Pausing, the flushed squirrel nodded her head. "Well, guess I've got somethin' to look forward to."

"We both do," Mandy smiled and quickly noticed the trembling of Sandy's spine. "You must be freezing. Do you want to move to a different season?"

"How about fall?"

The squirrels moved to the Fall Biosphere and sprawled beneath the scarlet leaves. Discreetly, Sandy slide against Mandy's side and absentmindedly traced her jagged scar. Mandy's heart dropped to her feet. She knew that being friends with Sandy was dangerous, but she also knew that being _more_ than friends was a death sentence. If Sandy even knew her secret, the strong squirrel would become a target. Mandy just couldn't risk hurting her friends…and especially Sandy. Not now. Not while _they_ still wanted her.

"How about a little competition?" Sandy suggested with a wicked smile. "A game. First to three wins is the victor."

"I accept this challenge. Name the game, sweetheart."

"Twenty questions."

Mandy laughed at the choice. "I'm an expert player. You don't know what you've gotten yourself into."

"We'll see about that."

It started. Mandy had to guess first. Within ten questions, she knew that Sandy was thinking of the scientific name for a particular coral. Sandy had to guess next. She knew within fifteen questions that Mandy was thinking of clam chowder—as inappropriate as that was for a squirrel living among sea creatures. Mandy's turn. She knew that Sandy was thinking of Bruce Lee within sixteen questions. Sandy's chance. Mandy was thinking of the New England Patriots. So, this was it. Tied. Two wins to two wins.

The decisive victory rested on Mandy's shoulders.

"An eagle?" Mandy guessed and Sandy shook her head. That was question eighteen. Mandy simply couldn't think of the answer. She had listed every big animal capable of flight, and none of them were in Sandy's mind. Mandy had two questions left. "A vulture?"

"No. One last question, Tails."

"A goliath heron?"

"Nope! That's it. I win. I was thinkin' of a pterodactyl."

"That's not fair. Those aren't around anymore."

Sandy scoffed. "You never asked if it was alive or not. Besides, I have a robot pterodactyl that's still around. You're just a sore loser. Loser with a capital _L_."

"Keep teasing me and you're going to be in trouble."

Tauntingly, Sandy kept her cheeky attitude. So, Mandy started to tickle her sides and Mandy was an expert tickler. Sandy wheezed and howled with giggles, and then she tried to tickle her attacker. A full-out tickle war lasted for five full minutes. Finally, they were too tired to continue. However, Sandy wound up on top of Mandy. Hearts raced. Temptation called. Mandy nervously smirked and glanced at her watch.

"It's so late. I had no idea."

Sandy sadly rolled to Mandy's side. "Yeah. I best be on my way. It's been a really nice night, Mandy. Can we…maybe…do it again?"

"Yeah. I'd really like that. Maybe we could have lunch at the Krusty Krab tomorrow?"

"Great. That sounds better than a banjo at a honkytonk on a Friday night."

Mandy walked Sandy to the door and they shared an awkward embrace. Sandy offered to return the Red Sox sweatshirt, but Mandy insisted that she should keep it. The moment the door closed, Mandy leaned against it with a heavy frown. That's not how she wanted the night to end, but she had too many reasons to stay away.

This squirrel did not vanish beneath the ocean just for research. No, her motivations went much deeper than that. In this moment, she wished that she could simply tell everyone why she really moved to Bikini Bottom. That way, she could go after the girl and see her friends without feeling like a dark cloud loomed overhead.

But it wasn't that simple.

Meanwhile, Sandy walked home with a miserable expression. She replayed the memory of the kiss on her forehead. She could still feel it, and she could still feel the warmth of Mandy's sweatshirt. It all weighed heavily on her mind. When she sluggishly headed towards the Treedome, she heard the voice.

"Sandy!"

"Howdy, SpongeBob…" she distractedly waved and continued to move.

He quickly caught up to her. "What's wrong? You look so sad."

"Do you really want to know?"

"I sure do. You can talk to me."

"Well, somebody's caught my eye. I like them a whole bunch, but I don't think anything is gonna happen anytime soon."

SpongeBob was very interested to know who it was. "Somebody? Who is it, Sandy? Tell me, tell me, tell me!"

"_Somebody_, okay? They know who they are, and that's what counts."

"Won't you give me a hint? Just a hint?" he pleaded and she tried to think of something that wouldn't give it away.

Then it came to her. He'd never be able to pin the person down with this clue…

"I've seen them at the Krusty Krab. Now, it's late and I'm going home. Shouldn't you be at home too? It's nearly dark."

He shook his head. "I'm playing hide and seek with Patrick. I haven't found him for four hours."

"Did you check his rock?"

SpongeBob ran off with a wave. "Thanks, Sandy!"

After SpongeBob found Patrick at his rock, which he totally forgot to check first, he sat with his buddy on the sand couch. Naturally, he told Patrick about Sandy and they tried to think of who this mystery person could be. Patrick said that he had it figured out.

"It's probably you, SpongeBob. It's the only logical choice."

SpongeBob gulped. "Me? It couldn't be. She said that this person _knows _it's them."

"Maybe that was her way of telling you."

"I don't think so…"

"C'mon. Everyone always thinks that you and Sandy have a thing."

"That doesn't make it true, Patrick."

"You can't handle the truth!"

While the boys continued to go around and around with speculations, they were miles away from the absolute truth. In fact, Squidward Tentacles was still the only one aware of the situation. But…would it stay that way for long?


	6. Chapter 6

_**Six: Affection Infection**_

"You know the rules," SpongeBob laughed with his three friends atop the slopes of Sand Mountain. "Last one down has to buy Krabby Patties for everyone! Get ready…ready…and…go!"

Easily, Sandy took the lead. Mandy managed to get right beside her with a brilliant smile. "Hope you're happy with second place."

"I figure you'd become a famous country singer before you'd get down this slope first."

"Don't underestimate my accent, sweet cheeks. I'd take you down in Southern karaoke any day of the week."

"That a challenge, Tails?"

"You'd better believe it."

Grinning, they fought it out on the slopes. SpongeBob almost got the best of Mandy on a corner, but she leapt back into second place. In an attempt to overtake Sandy, Mandy tried to swerve in front of her. Instead, she tripped herself and Sandy fumbled over Mandy's back. Laughing, they simply rolled the rest of the way like a snowball going downhill. SpongeBob and Patrick actually beat them. This is only because the squirrels purposely stalled…to hold to each other a bit longer.

When they landed, Mandy was atop Sandy with smoldering eyes.

The boys didn't notice.

"You both have to pay," Patrick declared. "I want two of everything on the menu. No exceptions."

"Fair enough," Mandy agreed as she helped Sandy to her feet. "I'll pay for it. It's my fault we got in last place. I'm sorry that I botched your chances at winning the race, Sandy."

"Don't worry. That's the most fun that I've ever had losing."

Blushing, Mandy had to move away from the other squirrel. She was afraid that Sandy might catch the desire in her eyes. So, Mandy caught up to SpongeBob and snuggly hugged her best yellow pal with a playful chuckle instead. Giggling the entire way to the Krusty Krab, they continued to laugh once they got inside. After some hilarious jokes and friendly conversation, Mandy glanced at the time with a groan. "I have to check my equipment."

"Would you like to come to the Treedome when you're done?" Sandy hopefully offered with the faintest flirtation. "I gathered some new data for my research and I'd like your opinion."

"Of course. Scientists have to stick together. I'll see you in a bit, sweetheart."

Just after Mandy left, the sponge focused his attention on Sandy. He was still fascinated by the mystery of her crush's identity, and he was concerned that Patrick might be right. "Um, Sandy? Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, SpongeBob. What is it?"

"When you said that you have _somebody_, and they'd know who they were, was that your way of telling that _somebody _that they were the _somebody _you'd like to be your _somebody_?"

Sandy stared. "Have you been in the super glue again?"

"It was just a question," he nervously laughed.

Patrick was more direct. "Who do you have a crush on, Sandy?"

"_Somebody_, all right?" Sandy flustered and gathered herself. "It's just impossible for a squirrel to have a little privacy in this town."

Her eyes fell on Squidward as a warning to keep things quiet. Obviously, she was well aware that the octopus knew about her and Mandy, so she could only hope that he'd remember what happened the last time that he intruded on her personal life. He anxiously smiled and lifted a secretive tentacle to his lips. With a nod, she wandered away from the restaurant and towards her house.

"Did you see that?" Patrick asked SpongeBob in an exaggerated whisper. "She looked at Squidward! It must be him!"

"Squidward?" SpongeBob didn't seem to like that notion, though it was not clear to others _why _he wasn't happy with the idea of Sandy and Squidward. "Does Sandy—you know—_like_ you?"

"What?" he stammered as sweat formed. If he accidentally let it slip that the squirrels were sweet on one another, he figured that he'd be strung up in the Treedome and ready to become barbeque. So, he tried to play dumb. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Patrick motioned to his agitated eyes. "Look at him being all twitchy and stuff, SpongeBob! He knows something!"

"What's all this noise?" Mr. Krabs demanded as he surfaced from the office. "It'll scare off me customers."

"Sandy has a crush on Squidward," Patrick simply explained with a loud slurp of his drink.

Mr. Krabs stared at him inquisitively. "Does she?"

"Or, is it you, Mr. Krabs? I bet it's you," SpongeBob wanted to prove that there was nothing between the rodent and the cephalopod, so his tone was a bit more urgent than he would have liked.

"Me?" Mr. Krabs laughed. "I don't think so, boy. Surely she doesn't like Squidward. That can't be right."

Squidward glared. "Is it so hard to believe that someone would be interested in me? I'm sophisticated, artistic, talented—"

"Boring, grouchy, and arrogant too," Mr. Krabs nodded and softly hummed to himself.

"Well, Squidward is perfectly likeable," SpongeBob defended. "But, I don't think he's Sandy's _somebody_."

"Does it matter?" Squidward finally groaned at the excitable group. "It's her business."

Mr. Krabs snapped his claws. "It's got to be Squidward. He obviously knows something we don't."

Squidward just shook his head. It was infectious. As much as he liked to gossip, he didn't like to _be_ the gossip. He hoped that the squirrels would announce their relationship sometime soon, as he was already becoming an easy target. Mr. Krabs already named him the _Rodent Romeo_, and SpongeBob buzzed in his ear every few minutes. The sponge wanted to know, for sure, if he was secretly after Sandy. Squidward was losing his mind.

Later, Sandy heard a knock at the Treedome and gladly let Mandy inside. Mandy looked around and widely smiled. "I love this. It's fantastic."

"Shucks, it's nothing much. You've got the mansion. I got the shack."

"I like this better. It's homey. I'd love to see more of it."

First, Sandy led her to the latest inventions with brief explanations. "This is something I call a stargate. It makes wormholes and takes you wherever you want to go in the universe. But, it's not working so great. It only goes to a planet full of talking honey bees. I got stung every which way last time I went there, so this needs definitely more work. I also got a working droid called D2R2. It doesn't do much. Just fetches lemonade. Of course, I got the robot pterodactyl. It's like a submarine dinosaur. Fun to pilot. But, my favorite is this."

"What is it?" Mandy questioned as she looked at the device that resembled a mixture of a sonar device and old cellphone.

"It's an organic locator and recall device. Uses DNA and cell structures. I can put in a generic piece of coral and find others like it anywhere in the world, or I can put in specific DNA. Find that very person or thing."

Mandy glanced and gently smirked. "So, you could find me anywhere in the ocean with this?"

"I could. If you wanted to see how it works…" Sandy paused and brightly grinned when Mandy nodded. "Just need your finger. It's a little poke."

Once the DNA was added, Mandy saw her little dot on the sonar screen. "Fantastic. You're brilliant, Sandy. Absolutely brilliant."

"Aw, it's just a gizmo."

"No. It's more than that. It's genius."

Their eyes locked and they could feel the magnetism. Sandy tried to hide the flush, but it was still very obvious. "Well, I'm glad you think so 'cause I can find you _wherever _you go now. Looks like you're stuck with me hanging around you."

"I don't mind it. You've always been able to find me from the start."

Sandy knew that Mandy was not talking in a literal sense. Mandy felt like this other scientist could figure her out like a simple equation, and it always felt like Sandy could also take her back home. They were comfortable. Natural. And, they completely forgot that Sandy wanted Mandy's opinion on her research. So, they wound up in an interesting position.

They were cuddling on Sandy's wheel.

Mandy's sweatshirt was wadded like a pillow under her head, and Sandy had nuzzled against her side. Idly, Sandy's hand rocked the wheel back and forth. As they swapped stories about their childhood, Sandy told Mandy about her parents' anniversary party. All of her family went to celebrate her folks' union, and Sandy was the only one unable to go. She had to work that day and hadn't had the chance to visit home in quite a while. As much as she loved the sea, she felt blue and utterly lonely the day she missed that party.

Sandy wasn't sure what came over her. The words kept spilling from her mouth while her chin rested on Mandy's collarbone. Whenever possible, Sandy Cheeks was determined to maintain her tough image. It felt strange to feel so vulnerable. So open. But, here was this squirrel who understood what it was like to leave the surface behind. A squirrel that _knew _the surface. That knew so many things that sea creatures couldn't necessarily understand. And, Mandy felt…safe. So, it just happened.

Tears.

"Hey," Mandy quietly muttered as she held the Texan close. "It's okay. I'm not going anywhere."

With a small smile, Sandy clung to Mandy and let the emotions flow. True to her word, Mandy's grip never slipped. She held onto Sandy for over an hour. But, all good things have to come to an end. Mandy had to collect her final data for the evening. So, it was time to say goodnight. There was just one little problem.

Neither of them wanted to.

"Well. I should. You know…" Mandy uncomfortably coughed. "Research."

"Yeah. So, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"I'll be in Rock Bottom all day for an experiment."

Sandy frowned at the thought. They'd seen each other almost every day for at least two weeks…even if it were only a minute. "All right. Well, have fun."

"Wait," Mandy thought for a moment. "I might be able to stop by for a late night snack or something."

"I'll be here."

They finally managed to part ways for the evening. Sandy sat on her wheel and idly used her foot to sway back and forth. She slid into the sweatshirt with a sigh. It was official. She was nuts for Mandy Tails.

Mandy returned to her house and decided to do some tai chi in her Zen garden, but she was horribly distracted. She kept hearing that Texan accent. It was official. She was nuts for Sandy Cheeks.

Perhaps it was time to move forward.


	7. Chapter 7

_**Seven: Choices**_

"Hello, Squidward," Mandy greeted him as he automatically winced at the memory of her strong arm. "Is SpongeBob here?"

SpongeBob's face appeared in the window. "Hey, Mandy! How are you?"

"I'm good, squishy buddy. Just here for some lunch."

"Do you want one of those special veggie patties?" he wondered.

On cue, Mr. Krabs popped onto the scene. "Veggie patties? Boy, you know that I haven't put those on the menu! Don't be giving any out! I don't even know what I'd charge for 'em."

"Mr. Krabs, this is Mandy, remember? She's the one who taught me how to make them," SpongeBob calmly explained. "She was a chef for a whole summer, so she knows a lot of fancy cooking."

The crustacean's eyes turned to dollar signs. "You're the one, eh? Go whip one up. Maybe I will taste it after all. Fancy cookin' does fetch a high price…"

"Would I get any compensation for this?"

Mr. Krabs fell over, completely incapacitated at the idea of _paying _her for her services, so Squidward answered for him. "Nope. No money. Just misery and crushed dreams."

"Right. Well, I guess that I can help out," Mandy agreed as she joined her spongey friend in the kitchen. SpongeBob promptly stuck a hat on her head and handed her a spatula. "Ready to grind some griddle, yellow man?"

"Aye, aye, Mandy!"

Across the street, Plankton spied on the situation with a powerful telescope. "Karen, someone new just went into the kitchen! It's a squirrel, but it's not that country bumpkin. It's a new one. And…it has a hat and a spatula! Maybe it's an employee who knows the secret formula!"

"Plankton, _it _is a person. Besides, I seriously doubt that Mr. Krabs would give the formula to a new employee."

"Well, maybe this employee isn't new, Karen. Maybe I just haven't noticed. I have been busy with my stamp collection…anyway, I should gather some intelligence. This could be a breakthrough!"

Karen sighed at her husband. "Yes dear. Go ahead and think of another ridiculous plan that is destined to blow up in your face and cause severe depression after your inevitable failure."

"You know, Karen, sometimes it doesn't feel like you're very supportive."

While Mandy and SpongeBob had a wonderful time in the kitchen, Plankton snuck into the Krusty Krab and tried to get as close to the kitchen as possible. He hoped to overhear something useful about this stranger in the employee hat, but Squidward spotted him before he could get near enough. The octopus simply grabbed him with a bored expression.

"You know that I'm just going to get Mr. Krabs to throw you out, right?"

"I'm only here to welcome the new employee to the neighborhood…"

Squidward's expression didn't change. "Yeah sure."

"Fine. I want to use the employee to get the secret formula, and you won't be able to stop me this time!"

"Heh-heh!" Squidward honked in amusement. "I'd like to see that. I would mess with Mandy, if I were you. She'd squash you with a glance."

"I'm not afraid of one squirrel."

Squidward accidentally slipped and passed on the gossip. "Please, it wouldn't be just one squirrel. Sandy and Mandy are a package deal. It's really nauseating how close those two are. Mess with one and you get the other. Trust me. I know."

"Package deal?" Plankton echoed.

Panicked, Squidward was through with banter. "Mr. Krabs! We have a pest problem!"

Mr. Krabs tossed him across the street.

"Hmm," Plankton mumbled as he dusted himself off. "Maybe I can use one squirrel to get to the other…"

Inside the Krusty Krab, Mandy and SpongeBob had a break in the orders. The squirrel did not know the secret formula, but she knew more about Krabby Patties than the average person. She finished her veggie patty and delivered it to Mr. Krabs. With his first bite, his eyes turned to gold.

"Dear Neptune! This is delicious! It is going on the menu. We can charge a fortune for this fancy sandwich! Would you mind teaching SpongeBob more about it? Maybe sticking around a bit longer?"

Mandy knew that she wouldn't be paid, but she needed to talk to her yellow friend anyway. "I can do that, Mr. Krabs."

"Great! Get cooking. I'm not not-paying you to stand around."

SpongeBob happily danced into the kitchen. "This is the best afternoon ever! I love cooking with you, Mandy. We're a great team."

"Absolutely," Mandy agreed and carefully approached the subject. "Porous pal, I need some advice."

"Advice? You want me to give you advice? I am so honored. At your service, my friend! What's on your mind?"

"There's someonewho I really like. I'd like to be with this _someone, _but I'm worried that my past could come between me and this _someone_."

"I see," SpongeBob nodded and made no connection between Sandy's _somebody _and Mandy's crush. "What would come between you and this _someone_? Is it something really, _really_ terrible?"

"You could say that. I'm scared that this _someone _might get hurt. Badly hurt…or worse."

SpongeBob considered the situation and decisively shrugged. "I can say with absolutely certainty that I don't know, Mandy. That sounds like a really hard choice. I don't know what to tell you."

"What would you do?"

"Well, I'd want them to be safe and sound. No matter what. But, I'd want to follow my heart and feel my fuzzy feelings too. So, I guess that I'd just do what felt right. Does that help?"

"Yeah. That's a possibility. Thanks, my friend. You're the best."

Suddenly, it hit him. "Wait, who is this _someone, _Mandy?"

"They know who they are."

Regardless of this remark, SpongeBob questioned Mandy further. He guessed Squidward, Patrick, himself, Mr. Krabs, Plankton, Larry Lobster, Bubble Buddy, Mermaid Man, Barnacle Boy, and the fish from the news. Even when she told him that none of those people were that _someone_, he did not believe her and decided that it had to be Larry Lobster—even though they had only met once or twice.

Mandy gave up and cooked in silence.

Elsewhere, Sandy was conducting research. It just so happened that Patrick was enjoying a powernap in that area. (He won the first competition and qualified for a regional challenge.) Sandy's movements woke him from his slumber, and he happily waved at his fuzzy buddy.

"Sandy! What are you doing in my house?"

"This isn't your house, Patrick."

He looked around with a laugh. "Oh. Yeah. So, what's new?"

"Not much," she tried to act like she wasn't thinking about Mandy, but Patrick could see that something was bothering her.

"What's wrong? I know that look. Sad squirrel face."

"Well," she couldn't believe that she was about to do this. "I could use some…advice."

"From me? Really?"  
>She swallowed at the thought. "Sure, why not?"<p>

"Good point. What's up?"

"You know how I like that _somebody_?" she waited and Patrick nodded. "Well, I really like this _somebody _and I'm gonna lose my marbles if things stay the same. Should I make a move? Try for this _somebody _even though they've said that they need time? It's been a while since we talked about it…"

Patrick considered the situation and spoke as if he were a monk in the mountains of Tibet. "You already know what you're going to do, Sandy Cheeks. You're only afraid of the consequences. So, do not fear! Just go for it."

"You're right," Sandy murmured in amazement. She gave the pink guy a warm embrace. "You're smarter than you look, Patrick."

"Is that a good thing?"

"Yeah. It's a good thing, buddy. Thanks a lot."

With a wave, Sandy left to find Mandy. She had to talk to her New Englander as soon as possible. There was no way that she could wait any longer. She knew that she had to take a chance and try. Lately, it felt like they were moving closer and closer. Surely that meant that the timing was right. It had to be. If it weren't, Sandy wasn't sure what she was going to do.

At that moment, Mandy finished at the Krusty Krab and headed towards her house. By the time she got there, Sandy was already waiting by the door. They exchanged smiles and Sandy pulled her into a tight hug. Mandy backed away with a curious grin.

"What was that for?"

"I'm glad to see you," she explained and plucked up the courage. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"You can always talk to me. What's on your mind?"

"I've done a lot of thinkin' and the like, and I wanted to talk to you about us."

Mandy nodded her head and smirked. "I wanted to talk to you too."

"Really?"

"Yeah. But, you first."

Sandy wasn't sure how to put it, so she made it up on the fly. "We've seen a lot of each other lately, and I know we talked about things a while back, but I think that. I think we. Well, I'd like it if we could go out. Together. On a real date. I'd like that _a whole lot_. So, there it is. Now, what did you want to say?"

Mandy took a deep breath.


	8. Chapter 8

_**Eight: Get Brave**_

"Sandy," Mandy shakily began in the smallest murmur. "I was going to tell you that we shouldn't be together."

Her heart twisted and sputtered. "Did I hear you right?"

"It's not that I don't—"

"You're kiddin' me, aren't you?"

"If things were different…"

"You best explain yourself this instant, or I'm just gonna drag it out of you," Sandy wasn't about to give up. This woman was in her system, and _surrender_ wasn't in the squirrel's vocabulary. "I mean it, Tails. What the heck is goin' on here?"

The Texan had no idea that Mandy was falling apart on the inside, as Mandy was able to contain herself other than the shadows of tears within her eyes. "I'm crazy about you. I am. And that's why I have to do this. If we took the next step, you'd be in even more danger than I've already put you in. I just want to keep you safe."

"Are you trying to say that I'm not strong enough to protect myself?"

"No. That's not—"

"I have the _blacker belt _in karate. I have a kick and lasso arm that can take down anybody faster than you can say _rodeo_. I have won more competitions in my life than—"

"You're the strongest person I've ever met," Mandy sharply interrupted with an adoring gaze.

"So, I can handle myself, can't I? You don't have to protect me."

"Let me try. If they got to you, I'd never forgive myself."

Sandy instantly paused. "_They_? _They _who?"

"I told you that I have a past. It's not a good one. People are looking for me. Bad people. _Powerful _people. They want me very much, and they will do anything to get me. You'd be an asset to them. A perfect way to break me in two."

Gently, Sandy placed her hands on Mandy's shoulders. "We can fight together. I mean, we're both tougher than a cactus dressed in a sandpaper suit. If we're united, nothing'll stop us."

"Listen," Mandy sternly attempted. "I've done some terrible things in my life. And, in the end, everything and everyone I cared about paid the price. I don't know if I'll ever be able to make up for the things I did back then. I don't even know if this is the right choice now. I don't know anything except that I have to do whatever I can to be sure. Sure that you won't be in trouble because of me."

"Mandy…"

"Please, sweetheart," Mandy somberly held onto Sandy's wrists. "It's hard enough already."

At this point, Sandy didn't want to _convince_ Mandy that they should be together. What kind of relationship could they have if Sandy had to plead for it? How could they have any stability if Mandy doubted them every step of the way?

However, Sandy didn't know that Mandy _did_ want a relationship. She didn't need Sandy to convince her of anything. No, Mandy knew that they could have a shot at something amazing. But, how could she gamble with Sandy's life?

She didn't think that she could.

"Well," Sandy sniffled as she suppressed an emotional outbreak. "All right. If it's what you want."

"It's how it has to be. I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. I just want you to know…I'd be your partner at every hoedown."

The New Englander's face fell. "I'd be your partner in everything."

Since Mandy couldn't kiss her on the cheek through their helmets, she simply put her hand over Sandy's heart. They shared a lasting gaze while they both felt their chests tighten. Then, Mandy disappeared into her house. She just stood in the middle of autumn, numb. So numb.

Sandy just stood outside by the door, blank. So blank.

Two days later, neither squirrel had left their houses. Both felt depressed and lost, and it was hard to say who took their talk the hardest. They were equally torn to bits inside and a wreck on the outside. It was easier for them to fade into their domes than face the world. However, Sandy wouldn't be alone for long.

Her door opened and she quickly sat up from her place on the wheel. Part of her wished that it would be Mandy, so she had mixed feelings when she saw the visitor. "SpongeBob."

"Hey, Sandy!" he cheerfully waved and wandered to her wheel. "That's a weird bed."

"Yeah," she tried to forget their afternoon swaying in the sun. "What brings you by?"

"I hadn't seen you in a while. I thought that we could all go out. Maybe see a movie."

Sandy shook her head. "Na, I think that I'll just stay put."

"Really?" SpongeBob stopped and noticed his friend's frown and the way she clung to a sweatshirt even in this heat. "Is something wrong?"

"Things didn't work out with that _somebody._"

"Oh…" he curiously twiddled his thumbs. "Can you tell me who it is now? I won't tell anyone else."

He would tell everyone, but Sandy didn't care about much in that moment. "Yeah. I s'ppose there's no point in keeping feelings secret anymore. It's Mandy."

_Silence._

Sandy grew worried that her little secret might be too much for innocent pal, but he brightly grinned and applauded. "You two would make an _adorable_ couple! If you had told me earlier, I would have given you the best date ever. Candlelit table, perfect patties, maybe some lovely music—"

"There's no dates, SpongeBob. Never was. She doesn't want to date me."

"I find that hard to believe," he smoothly disagreed. "She told me about her _someone_ and I bet it's you! Besides, you're the nicest smartest strongest woman I know. I don't know many women, but you're the best. And Mandy's the best too. So, you'd be the bestest couple in all of Bikini Bottom! What could possibly keep you apart?"

"She's trying to protect me from some bad folks. I told her we'd handle it, but she wouldn't listen."

SpongeBob comfortingly patted his friend on the hand. "Maybe she's just scared and she'll get brave. Don't lose hope, Sandy. I think you two are meant for each other."

"You think?"

"Sure I do! I didn't know about your feelings until a few minutes ago, but seeing you and Mandy together makes _perfect sense_ to me now."

"I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing," Sandy mumbled at her yellow friend's sometimes questionable logic. "But, I hope you're right. I'm nuts for her."

Meanwhile, Mandy couldn't take sitting inside any longer. She chose to go for a walk around the town. Thinking that she'd get to see SpongeBob or Patrick, she headed to their street. Since SpongeBob was with Sandy and Patrick decided to look for lost socks, Mandy only knocked on empty houses. The noise drew Squidward from his house.

Irately, he folded his arms. "Do you mind keeping it down? I'm trying to paint a new self-portrait."

"Sorry."

With that, Mandy glumly started to walk away. Squidward knew something was up when she didn't cheerfully interact with him. "What, no clever remark about my artistic abilities or my _supposedly_ narcissistic ways? Not even a cheeky squirrel-smirk? Nothing?"

"Yeah. I got nothing," Mandy confirmed as Squidward spotted the dark circles under her eyes.

"Oh," he stopped and glanced at this grey woman. He wasn't sure why it happened, but the question slipped out anyway. "Is something wrong?"

"That depends. Do you care or are you just bored?"

"Hard to say."

"Right," Mandy heavily sighed and figured that talking to Squidward was better than talking to nobody at all. Besides, she kind of liked the grouchy guy. He didn't mince words and she could use his realistic point of view. "I'm having relationship issues."

Squidward slowly nodded. "You and Miss Texas are calling it quits, then?"

"I called it quits before it could even start, and I'm not happy about it."

By now, he had come to almost pull for the squirrels. It would be nice to see a couple succeed, a couple that gave him a shaky sense of hope. A hope that maybe, _maybe_, he could have such a happy relationship…not that he had anybody in mind or anything. In any case, he found that he was invested in his favorite gossip column: Sandy and Mandy. (Not that he'd admit it.)

"Why'd you do that?"

"I didn't want her to get hurt."

The octopus found this unbelievably ridiculous. "So, you left her?"

"Yes."

"You didn't want to hurt her, so you went and left her. That makes _so _much sense. I'll bet she was thrilled about it."

Mandy glared. "No, she wasn't happy at all."

"I didn't think so. You do realize that you hurt her by leaving, right? Isn't that a contradiction? Leaving her to avoid hurting her and then hurting her by leaving her because you didn't want to hurt her?"

"That's not…" she paused and knew that he did have a point. Still, she was on the defensive and far too stubborn. "You don't understand, Squidward. She could be hurt a lot worse than that. There are people that could come here and take her or do even worse. I want to keep her safe."

"Right, right, _of course_! My mistake. Your logic is perfectly sound…"

"You're being sarcastic again, aren't you?"

Squidward smacked a tentacle to his forehead, actually feeling like the smarter person in the conversation. "How exactly are you going to keep her safe when you're nowhere near her?"

"The people are after _me_. They'll come for _me _and they'd use her to get to _me_. If they knew about us—"

"Mandy, a blind person could see that you and that cowgirl are a thing. Even if you aren't together, they'd still be able to figure out that you're crazy about her. You are crazy about her, right?"

"Do you really have to ask me that?"

Squidward opened his arms to emphasis his point. "_Then. Get. With. Her._ If those whoevers show up, at least you'd have a fighting chance together. And you'd be happier. There's nothing more terrifying than a sulking squirrel. Really. It's disturbing."

Many thought about it. He was completely right. She had spent the last two days in agony, feeling her heart slowly shrivel away, and Squidward was able to knock some sense into her after one conversation. Had it taken an outside view to show her the error of her ways? Had she let her fears and past failures rule her present? Had she really run from the one person she was nuts about?

Yep.

"Thanks for lending me your ears, Squidward. You hit the nail on the head. I was a total idiot."

"Pretty much," he stopped at the look on her face. "Please, don't throw me around again. I had to see a chiropractor after the last time."

"Don't worry. I won't do that…yet. You really helped out. You know, you're actually a really sweet person under all that crankiness."

Squidward swallowed. "Let's keep that between you and me. I have an image to maintain."

"You got it. Thanks again. I have to get moving."

Mandy could only hope that it wasn't too late to win over her favorite Texan.

In the Treedome, SpongeBob failed at convincing Sandy to go out for a fun time. He decided that he should catch up with Patrick for an afternoon of playtime, so he embraced the squirrel with a supportive smile. "Don't you worry, Sandy. Everything will be okay before you know it!"

"Thanks, buddy. I hope so."

He left with a spring in his step and Sandy lazily called on D2R2 for some lemonade. Time dragged by and she couldn't be motivated to do anything at all. Depression had truly set in. Suddenly, she heard the door and rolled her eyes at the sponge. What could he possibly want now? Sluggishly, she stood up and waited for him to enter. Instead, the door flew open and a rush of water followed.

It was Mandy.

She didn't know the procedures to open the door properly, and she didn't exactly care. Sopping wet, she tugged her helmet off and dropped it on the grass. Sandy wasn't sure what was going on, so at first she was too stunned to speak. As Mandy dramatically approached her like a scene from a cheesy romance film, she tried to gather her thoughts.

"Tails, what—"

Mandy pulled her into a kiss that was worthy of legends.


	9. Chapter 9

_**Nine: Calm before the Storm**_

It was passionate. It was long. It was perfect. Sandy's hands rested on the wet shoulders of Mandy's suit, and Mandy's cold gloves wrapped around Sandy's neck. Once they ran out of air, which did take a while, Mandy held onto Sandy in silence. There was a brief second of bliss before either moved. Then, Mandy was reduced to a stuttering, bumbling, nervous schoolgirl.

"I'm so sorry. I was an idiot," she whispered with a frown. "I should have listened to you. I do want to be with you. I mean, I'm crazy about you. I've been crazy about you since I saw you. And, well, it scares me. How much I like you. Just the thought of something happening to you sends chills down my tail. I just was so worried that you'd get hurt because of me. But, you're right. We can stay safe if we're together. If that's still what you want. If you don't want to go on a date now, I completely understand. I have been such a—"

Sandy briskly kissed her a second time with a smile. "I was hopin' you'd come around."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I'm your girl, Mandy Tails."

"And I'm your girl, Sandra Cheeks."

"Honey pie, don't _ever _call me Sandra again."

Mandy laughed with a brief peck on Sandy's temple. "Yes dear. How about some dinner? I'll cook."

"You betcha. Just wondering…what made you reconsider us?"

"You won't believe me."

"C'mon. Try me."

"Well, I talked with Squidward and he set me straight."

Sandy blinked several times. "The guy in the tiki, Squidward?"

"Yes. The cashier without pants, Squidward."

"Shoot…that is hard to believe."

"I know. I think that he's secretly rooting for us. That, or he thinks about us behind closed doors…"

"I'm gonna pretend that you didn't just say that."

With a smile, Sandy and Mandy went to kitchen and cooked a meal together. Joyfully, the squirrels now shared their first proper date. They ate, they danced, they talked, they researched, they exercised, and they wound up outside to see the sunset. Lying side by side, they held hands as the water glowed with oranges and reds. Mandy couldn't tear her eyes from Sandy's beautiful face, and Sandy felt flustered under the intent gaze.

"My face isn't gonna get up and go away, you know…" Sandy lightheartedly joked.

Mandy smirked with embarrassment. "Sorry. It's just interesting to me that I found someone like you. I'm not usually so lucky, especially when it comes to relationships."

"And we're in one?"

"Yes. If that's okay."

"I don't know. I have a girlfriend."

The New Englander's eyes widened in terror. "What?"

"She's next to me," Sandy teased while Mandy playfully shoved her. "Aw, I was just kiddin' around, Tails. It's you and me no matter what."

"You bet. I'll keep you safe. That's a promise."

"I'll keep you safer."

As their wonderful night bled into the morning, the squirrels had breakfast together and reluctantly parted ways to start the day. They couldn't be any happier.

That afternoon, they got Patrick and SpongeBob to meet them for a picnic at Goo Lagoon. It was time to make their announcement. Mandy was nervous about their reactions to the news, but Sandy already knew how SpongeBob was going to feel. They'd probably hear his cheers on land.

"YOU'RE TOGETHER?! ALL RIGHT! WOOOOOO!"

They must have heard the sponge two contents over.

"We are," Mandy confirmed with a glance at Patrick's stoic face. "Pat? You okay?"

He looked between them with concern. "Does this mean that we won't ever see you anymore?"

"No, you'll still see us," Sandy assured him. "Why would you say that?"

"I thought that couples liked to be alone all the time so they could have lots of hot s—"

"_Sandwiches_," Mandy promptly interrupted with an awkward laugh. "Don't worry. Nothing will change. We'll still be best friends and see each other all the time. Speaking of sandwiches, how about we get this picnic going?"

"Okay! I'm so ready!" SpongeBob excitedly cheered yet again. "I can't wait until everyone knows about you two. It's the best most adorable news in the history of Bikini Bottom. Oh, I just have to tell Squidward. He will be soooo shocked."

Sandy tried to hide her smirk. "Oh yeah. He'll be flabbergasted…"

As three weeks passed, Mandy and Sandy grew closer and closer. They spent a lot of time alone, but they also spent wonderful days with their favorite sponge and starfish. Mandy felt comfortable enough to truly make a home in Bikini Bottom and fully introduce herself to most of the locals. By now, it was fairly common knowledge that the squirrels were a couple. There were a few people who hadn't pieced the facts together, but they were about to figure things out on this special day…

Mandy's birthday.

"I'm so _old_," Mandy groaned in the Fall Biosphere of her house.

Sandy softly adjusted the zipper of Mandy's suit with a grin. "You're not old. This is a happy day, so get into the spirit of things. Don't be a party-pooper."

"Okay, okay. Where are we going again?"

She hesitated. "Just to get a Krabby Patty and see the boys."

"That sounds good. I could use some of SpongeBob's cheer and Patrick's…Patrick-ness?"

The Texan had yet to tell her girlfriend that there was a surprise party waiting at the Krusty Krab. Nearly everyone in town was going to be there, so there was quite an operation at the restaurant. Squidward stood at makeshift ticket booth in front, as everyone had to pay an entry fee to "contribute to the cost of the party" for Mandy. Most of the cash would just go to Mr. Krabs. (They didn't have to know that, of course.)

Plankton noticed this activity and excitedly glanced at Karen. "With all that commotion, I should be able to sneak right inside! Nobody will notice little ol' me slipping around all those people. Krabby Patties, here I come…"

"You'll just get thrown back here and hurt yourself again."

"That's why you have the acupuncturist on speed-dial, Karen."

Shiftily, Plankton waited for an unsuspecting form of transportation. Mrs. Puff was heading towards the Krusty Krab, so Plankton managed to hop into her pocket. She didn't notice, as she was mentally preparing herself for the yellow nuisance. Now, Plankton just had to hide and wait. At any moment, he'd be inside and free to slide into the kitchen. But, Mrs. Puff had to stand in line first.

"I don't have change," Squidward informed Pearl at the entrance. "I have to take whatever you give me."

"But, I'm the owner's daughter!"

"Uh-huh. Don't care. I just work here."

Once Pearl huffed and paid her way inside, Squidward easily spotted Plankton in Mrs. Puff's pocket. It was fairly obvious that a giant eye shouldn't be inside the teacher's clothing. So much for Plankton's sneaky plan. He realized that he was caught, so he attempted to run. This only alerted Mrs. Puff to the invasion. As she screamed and went in aimless circles, apparently thinking that it would somehow fling the invader to the ground, Squidward reached out and snatched the little guy. Mrs. Puff, still horrified from the experience, promptly paid the entry fee and ran inside to escape the green creature. Squidward's expression was bored and yet slightly amused.

"Put me down, Tentacles! I command it!"

"No."

"Please?"

"Uh…no."

"Fine!" Plankton crossed his arms and tried to get a good look at the Krusty Krab. "What's going on in there? Please tell me it's a going out of business special…"

Squidward sighed at the sad creature, again unable to stop the gossip. "If you must know, Sandy and SpongeBob set up a surprise birthday party for Mandy. Took them over a week. Boy, are those two crazy about that nasally rodent. Especially Sandy. You should just hear the way they talk. Such a sweet couple. Heh-heh. It's horrible."

"So, a party for Mandy, huh?" Plankton had all but forgotten all about the new squirrel and his plans to use her in his plots. His newest hobby had seriously frayed his attention. "That grey squirrel is dating the brown one?"

"Everyone knows that. Where have you been?"

"Stamp collecting," he paused as Squidward stared. "It's addicting, all right? I'll trade you my Flying Dutchman stamp book for entry to the party…"

As Plankton was thrown across the street _again_, he suddenly smiled and recalled his forgotten plans. "Well, well. It looks like I _can_ use Sandy to get to Mandy and the secret formula after all. That new squirrel will have to talk if she wants to see her girlfriend again! What could possibly go wrong?"

In the Krusty Krab, everyone waited for Mandy and Sandy. They made sure that it looked like a normal day so Mandy would be really surprised. When the squirrels entered, SpongeBob sprung from the kitchen while Patrick pulled down the banner with a misspelled birthday greeting. Everyone cheered while Mandy blushed and hugged Sandy. She knew that this obviously had to be SpongeBob and Sandy's idea.

Briefly, Mandy spent a few minutes with everyone. Though Squidward offered to provide the music, Mr. Krabs refused to allow it in his establishment. So, they had a real band and real dancing. As the rodents twirled and swayed, other couples joined them on the dance floor. There was Larry Lobster and Pearl, followed by Patrick and the mop, then Barnacle Boy and Mermaid Man shared an awkward spin, but Mr. Krabs couldn't seem to find the courage to ask Mrs. Puff for a dance.

However, SpongeBob confidently sprung to Squidward's side with those big and shimmery eyes.

"Would you like to dance with me?"

Squidward gulped and pointed at his chest. "Me? You want to dance with me?"

"Yes."

"No."

"Pretty please with sugar and a cherry on top?"

"Erm…no."

"Pretty, pretty please with sugar and a cherry and fudge and rainbow sprinkles and whipped cream and—"

To stop the chatter, Squidward grabbed his hand and tried to hide his contentment. "Make it quick, SquarePants."

Mandy looked around at all the smiling faces and odd couples. "This is fantastic. Thank you so much."

"I'm glad you like it. SpongeBob did most of the decorating stuff. Just wait until you see the gifts and the cake. It's something else."

"This entire day has been a gift. I haven't felt this at home in a very long time," Mandy dipped Sandy with a wicked grin. "It's all thanks to you, sweet cheeks."

Mandy saw all of the happiness in the room and hoped that it could last. Yet, she knew from experience that _nothing_ lasts forever and there is always a calm before the storm. She could almost hear thunder in the distance and see lightning in her lover's eyes. Maybe she was only a pessimist. Maybe, for once, there would be a happy ending. There was really no way to know. Not yet. So, she tried to leave her worries in the past and be grateful for living through another year. She was even more grateful for finding Sandy and Bikini Bottom, her safe haven at the bottom of the sea.

Yet, little did she know that her instincts were always right. A storm was coming and it was coming fast.

_They _knew.


	10. Chapter 10

_**Ten: The Oncoming Storm**_

It was just an ordinary Wednesday morning in Bikini Bottom. SpongeBob and Patrick were waiting in Squidward's kitchen to invite the octopus bowling, Mr. Krabs was sleeping in and dreaming of a town paved with gold, Mrs. Puff was enjoying a day without the yellow sponge, and other townspeople were lying on the beach or shopping downtown. Nobody had a clue about what was happening, especially not the squirrels.

The Mermaliar. It was still. A feeling of emptiness blanketed the hideout. As sophisticated machinery beeped and glowed, a communication device suddenly activated. Between the static and interference, a message crackled into the morning.

"You know who this is. We're coming. Spare us the trouble and surrender now. Or, have you forgotten what we're capable of?"

The transmission ended on an ominous note, but Mermaid Man was snoring on a cushy sofa and Barnacle Boy was at the doctor to check his bunions. Thus, the warning went unnoticed and unanswered. Even if they had received this strange transmission, it was not for them.

The Treedome. Everything was quiet and calm. Sandy's inventions were scattered throughout her home, and some were active while others were turned off. However, a fancy receiver was still connected. Again, a message rang.

"You know who this is, don't you? We _are_ coming. Spare us the grief and give up before it's too late. Or, have you forgotten what we're capable of?"

Though the dome was full of warmth, Sandy was snoring in Mandy's comfy bed and Mandy was busy whipping up some breakfast in her kitchen. Hence, the message in the Treedome was unheard. If the timing had been better, they would have reached their target…

The Chum Bucket lab. Plankton was shaving as he stared at his sloppily drawn plans. "What do you think, Karen?"

"I think that it's a terrible idea."

"Why are you _always_ a buzzkill? C'mon, we all know that squirrels are notoriously stupid. All I have to do is leave a giant pile of acorns underneath a trap. Then, the hillbilly will go for it and be stuck in the cage. I'll bring her here and tell that Mandy person that she has to trade the secret formula for her woman. Isn't that foolproof?"

"Do you really want me to answer that, Sheldon?"

Plankton rinsed the shaving cream from his jaw and glared. "Fine. Ruin my morning. It doesn't bother me. _I_ know that I'm a genius."

"We've dealt with Sandy Cheeks before and she's _highly_ intelligent. There is no way that she'll fall for acorns under a cage. Besides, we aren't even sureif Mandy knows the secret formula. You're wasting energy on a dead-end like you always do."

Just as Karen said it, a message came through one of Plankton's advanced devices. "You know who we are. We're coming for you. Do everyone a favor and surrender while you've got the chance. Or, have you forgotten what we're capable of?"

"Huh," Plankton hummed as he hopped to the device. "This is Plankton, evil genius and owner of the Chum Bucket. Who the hell are you?"

"That's not important," the thick New England accent responded. "We're looking for Mandy Tails."

"Then why'd you contact me? I have nothing in common with a squirrel."

"We have proof that she stole advanced equipment to create a dome under the sea. We tried to track it, but the trail stopped. So, we thought that we'd send a message to every piece of advanced machinery in the area—anything that could receive the message—and hopefully we'd reach her. Those science types love their technology. You obviously know her if you know that she's a squirrel. Can you confirm that she's in Bikini Bottom?"

Plankton paused and tried to think if this could benefit him. "What's it to you?"

"We have to retrieve Mandy Tails at any cost."

"Really?" he grinned and gave an excited motion to Karen. "It just so happens that I need some information from her myself. Maybe we could make a deal."

"No, we don't make deals."

"What if I told you that she has a girlfriend and I know where to find her?"

There was a beat and a hiss of static. "All right. Speak your piece."

Meanwhile, a groggy Sandy finished breakfast with her girlfriend. Mandy insisted that she should walk the Texan home, so they headed towards the Treedome together. Sandy's helmet awkwardly rested on Mandy's chest beneath her collar, and Mandy's arm snuggly held onto Sandy. They were completely at peace and happy with their fantastic relationship. What could _possibly _ruin this day?

Once they reached the Treedome, Sandy stood outside and gripped Mandy's fingers. "Want to come in for a second?"

"You aren't sick of me yet?"

"I'm so sick of this!" Squidward's voice screeched as he ran by them. "_Help me_!"

Patrick and SpongeBob pursued him with laughter as if it were a game, but Patrick picked up the sponge and threw him a great distance. SpongeBob landed on Squidward with ease and they fell to the ground with unbelievable force. It sent them both beneath the sand a bit, and Squidward could see stars. SpongeBob's giggle echoed all through the town.

"Gotcha, Squidward! You ready to go bowling now? We can share a milkshake between frames…"

"I'd rather be a pin than go bowling with you two numbskulls."

"We can arrange that," Patrick nodded as he easily scooped the octopus and sponge into his arms. "To the bowling alley!"

Squidward squirmed in Patrick's grasp while SpongeBob contentedly clung to the octopus' head. He waved to his squirrel friends with a grin. "Hey, Mandy! Hey, Sandy! Want to meet us at the bowling alley?"

"Maybe, SpongeBob," Sandy shouted as they continued to move. "We'll think about it."

Once they fuss ended, Mandy pointed at the Treedome. "You still want me to stop inside for a second?"

"You're asking? I can't exactly kiss you goodbye through glass, can I?"

They entered Sandy's house to share a sweet and passionate kiss. However, their friends' odd interruption had timed their entrance perfectly. Sandy's communication device beeped on cue. It caught their attention and Sandy went to play the recorded message. It was the same as before: the warning. Mandy heard it as her eyes widened, and she anxiously stepped backwards. Worried, Sandy strode to hold onto Mandy's waist.

"Tails?"

"I thought that I was careful enough. I destroyed everything as fast as I could…"

"What are you saying? What's wrong?"

"They know, Sandy. They found me."

"The ones after you?" Sandy waited for answer, but Mandy only remained silent with tears in her eyes. "Mandy, you gotta talk or I'll wrangle it out of you. You're actually scaring me, and that ain't an easy thing to do."

Mandy's expression was unlike anything Sandy had seen. It was as if a shadow heavily covered her features. "Do believe that a good person can do terrible things and still be good in the end?"

"If we're talking about you, the answer is yes. You are good, Mandy. But…what have you done?"

"When I was in graduate school, my uncle—Uncle Brandy—was living in Boston. He got involved with some…unsavory sorts. Got in too deep. That man was my best friend. The _fun_ uncle, you know? Always competed with me to see who could get the most peanuts in their mouth at once. So, I was the one he called when it got bad. Asked me to hide him. It took only twelve hours before they found us. To save his life, I offered to take his place. Took some convincing, but they agreed. I spent years working for them as a criminal."

Sandy took her hand with a small smile. "Well, your only crime these days is stealin' my breath every few minutes."

"Aw, that's so cute. You're the sweetest squirrel in the ocean."

"I learned it from you."

"Ugh, you're too adorable. You know, I can't exactly talk about my shady past as a vicious criminal while I'm blushing. It doesn't seem appropriate."

"Right. Sorry. So, we were talkin' about how you were a vicious criminal and…"

"And, I used to cause destruction for a living. After years of that, I didn't want to be bad anymore. So, I ran. We were robbing a pet store for high quality small animal hammocks, and I slipped out with a few bucks and some peanut butter dog biscuits. This time, it only took two days to find me. I was about to get my family to safety, but _they_ got there too fast. They tore apart my hometown. Hurt my sister. Nabbed Uncle Brandy. Told me they'd do him if I didn't come back."

Sandy paused and raised her hand with a question. "They'd _do _him? As in…_kill _him?"

"Yeah. He told me to go. We knew that they'd kill us both either way. At least I'd have a chance if I kept running. That was the idea, anyway. They took out Uncle Brandy. Those monsters chased me all over New England. I hoped that they wouldn't look for a squirrel in the sea. Most people wouldn't think of that. Well, they're not most people. I made a blood pact when I joined them. We all promise to stay together forever. You break that pact and they break you. Sweetheart…we're in trouble."

The Texan scoffed with confidence. "We can take care of those folks no problem. I'll wipe my floors clean with them. Heck, they'll suck so much we won't need a vacuum cleaner. You just wait and see."

"Sandy, you have to understand something. This is _the Family_. We're talking _The Godfather _here. That kind of deal. They do things that you won't see in cartoons and Hallmark movies."

"It can't be that bad."

"Would you want to see an episode of _Rocky and Bullwinkle _where Rocky wakes up next to Bullwinkle's head…and just his head?"

"Y'all didn't put moose heads in squirrels' beds, did you?"

Mandy hesitated. "No, not _moose_ heads…"

"…right. Well, I still say that we can handle anything. Even if it's creepy and real disturbing."

"You weren't there, sweet cheeks. You didn't see what they did to my home and my family. What if that happens here? I don't want to lose you. Or SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, anybody. I can't see Bikini Bottom burn. Not because of me. I made that mistake once and I can't make it again. This place and these people mean too much. You mean too much."

"So, what, you'll turn yourself in? Let those sickos take you and do who knows what?"

"It's the only way to end this. They won't stop coming after me. If I run, they'll turn this town upside-down to be sure that I'm not hiding here. If I fight, they'll just obliterate everything."

Sandy forcefully glowered. "No way. You are _not _giving up. You are staying right here and don't you dare argue with me, missy. That's final."

"But if they—"

"Suck it up, Amanda Samantha Alexandra Tails. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and no giving in. We are gonna stop them and I know we won't do it alone. This whole town, especially our buddies, will help out. So give me that shiny smile and we'll go rally the troops. We have plans to think up."

"You're not going to stop until you get your way, are you?"

"Nope. Don't I always get my way?"

"Yeah. We both know that you do," Mandy relented with a brief smirk for her fiery companion. "Okay, we'll fight to save Bikini Bottom on one condition."

"What's that?"

"Don't _ever _call me Amanda again."

"It's a deal."

They embraced with pits in their stomachs. Beneath the surface, they both knew that this fight wouldn't be easy…or painless.

Elsewhere, Plankton laughed in his lab at the communication device. "You have yourself a deal, boys! We'll have that squirrel in no time…"

No time at all.


	11. Chapter 11

_**Eleven: Troops and Thunder**_

_Crash._

"Allllllll right! Woo! I did it, I did it, I did it…" SpongeBob danced in celebration of his strike at the bowling alley. "Did you see that, Patrick? Did you see it, Squidward?"

Patrick hollered and clapped for his best pal, but Squidward acted like he didn't hear anything at all. True to his word, Patrick had placed Squidward among the pins when they first arrived. However, the octopus eventually decided that he'd rather sit with the loud duo than have bowling balls whack him in the head every few minutes.

He was doubting that decision.

At this point in time, SpongeBob high-fived his pink pal and glided around Squidward in circles. His shrill giggle echoed while he plopped across from the uninterested cephalopod. SpongeBob slyly smiled and slowly slid their milkshake closer to Squidward. Neither man moved. The porous fellow moved the second straw nearer to those tentacles as a hint. Squidward tried to ignore the gesture and those pleading eyes, but his resolve was fading…fast.

"Are you sure that you don't want to bowl?" SpongeBob asked him with fluttery eyelashes. "You can bowl my next frame if you want."

"No, no. That's fine. I'll just sit here and pretend that I'm somewhere else. Somewhere that doesn't smell like rented shoes."

"Okay, I guess that you don't have to bowl _yet_. But, you haven't even touched _our _milkshake! Try it. Only a little sip. That's all. A tiny little itty-bitty sip."

"No."

"_Sip it_. Please? Please? _Please_?"

"No."

"C'mon," Patrick commented as he shined his pink bowling ball. "Sip the man's milkshake."

"_Please, Squidward? Please?_" SpongeBob and Patrick both chanted the request over and over and over…

Squidward now knew that he definitely wanted to be a pin again.

His determination to avoid this situation had finally cracked. He knew that SpongeBob and Patrick would only make him do it anyway, and it wasn't such a bad idea. It was only a milkshake. It didn't mean anything, right? Delicately, he sipped the shake and found that it was quite tasty. SpongeBob happily squeaked and took the other straw. _Just a shake, Squidy, _the anxious man reminded himself, _doesn't mean anything._

Just then, the squirrels wandered inside the alley. Mandy and Sandy were shocked by the scene before them. SpongeBob and Squidward looked…cozy? Squidward almost appeared _happy_. It was quite terrifying to see the man so comfortable with the sponge. In fact, the pair was so enthralled with their drink that they hadn't even noticed the squirrels walk in.

"That's it. The world is ending," Mandy gulped with a worried glance. "I mean, a look of contentment on Squidward Tentacles' face is the worst possible omen. It's like a bunch of crows in a field or a black cat walking in front of you or a woman saying '_It's fine. I'm not mad. Do whatever you want.' _Sandy, we're so doomed._" _

"Na, don't be so overdramatic. I don't think it's so strange. Everything seems normal here."

Patrick threw himself and his bowling ball down the lane, and then he popped through the ball return with a laugh. "I wanna go again!"

"Well," Sandy coughed as the starfish threw himself towards getting a spare. "Patrick's always weird. That doesn't count. Maybe we should just get this over with."

"Yeah," Mandy agreed. "I can't keep looking at Squidward's half-smile. It's starting to really freak me out."

Sandy nodded and raised her Texan drawl. "Howdy, rodents in the room!"

"You made it!" SpongeBob cheered and quickly abandoned the drink to hug them both. "I am so excited. We're almost done with this game, but we can start a new one with everybody. I bet we can find some shoes in your sizes and some glittery bowling balls. Squidward doesn't want to join the fun, but I think that we can convince him to play…"

"Not likely," he dryly answered and continued to drink the frosty concoction.

Mandy smiled and patted her yellow pal on the shoulder. "Sorry, squishy buddy. We're here on business. Do you three have a minute?"

"Sure we do! Isn't that right, guys?" SpongeBob paused to hear an answer. He could only hear the slurp of Squidward's straw and the distant giggle of Patrick. "Pat? Where are you?"

"Over here," his voice called from the ball return. "I'm stuck. It tickles."

Mandy whispered to her girlfriend with urgency. "I'm starting to worry that Bikini Bottom is in more trouble than we thought. Are you sure that we can't just hire some mercenaries or something?"

"Have some faith in our friends, Tails."

"You already looked into it, didn't you?"

"They were too expensive. At least we've got a fry cook, a grouch, a pink guy, and some other misfits. They'll do fine, I think. We've won a bunch of battles before."

SpongeBob managed to yank Patrick free, but it sent them flying through the air. Squidward was knocked to the ground beneath the pile of limbs, and his angry shouts were muffled by uncontrollable laughter. Patrick purposely entered the ball return from the wrong direction to do it all over again. Mandy gave her girl a skeptical gaze.

"I'll take your word for it, sweet cheeks," she paused and tried to get everyone together. "Can we have a minute of your time? It's kind of important."

Finally, the three men were seated and paying attention. Sandy took point. "Well, we need y'all to help us out on something seriously big. Bikini Bottom is in danger. There are people comin' after Mandy, and we need to stop them before it gets ugly."

"People are coming after Mandy?" Squidward somehow managed to sound apathetic and curious at the same time.

"Bikini Bottom is in trouble?" SpongeBob anxiously screeched while his teeth nervously chattered.

"Is _y'all _a word?" Patrick wondered.

Mandy tried to be clearer. "I knew some very bad people before I came here, and they want to take me back. They'll do anything to get me. This includes destroying the town and hurting the people I care about. We need help if we're going to save the day."

"Of course you can count on us! Friends have to stick together," SpongeBob excitedly nodded.

"Right. I'm the star for the job," Patrick readily agreed.

"Have fun with that," Squidward spoke with the straw in the corner of his mouth. He stopped when everyone glared. Reluctantly, he sighed in defeat. "All right. Fine. I'll sort of help. Maybe."

"Great! We need to get everyone onboard. You know what they say: _A town that fights off bad guys who want to kidnap a squirrel together, stays together! _Let's get rolling," SpongeBob declared with a slight pause. "Maybe after this game and chilly drink with my favorite SquidSquid."

Squidward tried to ignore the squirrels' amused smirks.

As soon as their game ended and the glass was empty, the squirrels and their three sea buddies wandered to the Krusty Krab. It was there that SpongeBob managed to get everyone together for a meeting. They needed to recruit some more helpers if they were going to stand a chance. So, some very lethargic faces lined the walls of Bikini Bottom's favorite eatery.

"May I have your attention?" SpongeBob asked the entire room. They didn't answer, but he continued to talk. "We are gathered here today to unite as a town to save Bikini Bottom and our own grey squirrel! Sandy, it's all yours."

Since everyone knew Sandy longer than they had known Mandy, she figured that she should do the talking. She stepped onto the cash register as SpongeBob had done, and she tried her best to get everyone on their side. She explained that people were coming for Mandy, that they would target the town, and that they would go after its citizens. Though she followed the facts with encouraging words and pleading for help, the town didn't know how to feel.

"Well, that's it in a nutshell. Any questions?" Sandy attempted while the audience's vague expressions looked back at her. "Anything at all?"

"I don't know…" Pearl finally spoke. "Seems like a lot of trouble over one squirrel."

"But, this is our friend. It's _Mandy_. Wouldn't you all fight for Sandy? Or Patrick? Or me?" SpongeBob asked them. The crowd was quiet. "Maybe you shouldn't answer that. That's not even the point. This is about our home and our friends and justice and goodness and not getting blown to bits. Shouldn't _that_ matter?"

Mr. Krabs deeply sighed. "The boy's right. Besides, Mandy's an okay squirrel. She made me a patty that I can charge double for, and I sold out the first day it was on the menu! I'm sure that girl's got other fancy dishes that'll make me money. I vote that we help save the moneymaker. I mean, _squirrel_…"

"He has a point," Larry Lobster agreed. "Mandy did buy me a case of sunscreen when I ran out a few weeks ago, and I didn't even ask her."

"And she didn't tell my dad that I was out after curfew when she caught me at Goo Lagoon near her science machine thing," Pearl put her hands over her mouth the second she said it, and she apologetically smiled at Mr. Krabs. "Sorry, Daddy."

"Mandy even defeated our arch nemeses with her laser fingernails!" Mermaid Man loudly announced before Mr. Krabs could lecture his mammalian daughter.

Barnacle Boy put a hand on Mermaid Man's arm. "No, she drove us to the pharmacy and let us get ice cream on the way home, you old loon."

"And, she told those policemen that I didn'tspray paint '_Keep sponges out of Bikini Bottom!' _on that wall in downtown…which I didn't do…" Mrs. Puff nervously laughed it off. "Anyway, maybe we should help her after all. It does seem like she's an _overly_ dedicated citizen like in those police correctional videos. Not that I'd know about that."

There was a chorus of agreements and Mandy, touched by her newfound family under the sea, stepped forward to break her silence. "Thank you so much. It means a lot, but we have to figure out our strategy before they get here. That could be any time now. Sandy and I decided that this should run like a military operation. We'd be in charge. Is everyone okay with that?"

Everyone nodded and Sandy ambitiously grinned. "All right. This is when things get fun."

Meanwhile, Plankton was busy in the Chum Bucket lab to prepare for the attack. He was beneath a secret weapon to finish the final touches. "Karen, can you pass me another welding helmet?"

"I can't believe that you're going to work with those people," she groaned as the helmet slid to Plankton. "I'm worried that you're going to get in too deep or you'll be stabbed in the back."

"Please, they seem honest. Trust me. When they get here tomorrow, we'll finally have the secret formula and sweet success!"

"I hope you're right this time," Karen was actually afraid about this plot. She knew how these people could be, and she didn't want anything to go wrong. As much as the arrogant green guy drove her crazy, he was _her _arrogant green guy. "They'll be here in less than twenty-four hours. You have to finish that machine by morning."

"It's almost there. We're almost there…"

Deep down, Karen knew that there was thunder in the distance, a horrid natural disaster looming, and Bikini Bottom was in the thick of it.

There was no turning back now.


	12. Chapter 12

_**Twelve: When It Rains, It Pours**_

"This is Rodeo Rodent, come in Sox Squirrel, over…" Sandy called into her radio in the Treedome.

Mandy held the radio close to her helmet in the Mermaliar. "Sox Squirrel here. Report, over."

"We've got activity about twenty minutes out. Can you confirm? Over," Sandy asked while she stared at the beeps on her screen.

"I can confirm. Our equipment has picked up the signal too. Do you second the decision to get into position, over?"

"Yeah buddy, Sox Squirrel," Sandy quickly switched channels. "Calling Spatula Sponge and Penny Pinchers, this is Rodeo Rodent. Get your teams into position. Repeat, in position. Over."

"Yes, ma'am! Over," SpongeBob excitedly confirmed.

Mr. Krabs wasn't as bubbly. "All right, all right. I'll get moving."

"You have to say _over_, Penny Pinchers," SpongeBob corrected him. "Over."

"Fine. I'll get moving, _over_. Is that better, boy?"

"Sorry, I didn't catch that. You didn't say _over, _over."

"I did! I said _over, _SpongeBob!"

The radio crackled again. "What was that? I didn't hear you say _over_, over."

"Would y'all knock that off? This is serious!" Sandy irritably shouted. "…over."

Once the radio was quiet, the plan went into action.

Mandy would command SpongeBob, Patrick, Mermaid Man, and Barnacle Boy. They were named Bubble Force One, by SpongeBob naturally, and they would be first to defend Bikini Bottom. Sandy had Mr. Krabs, Mrs. Puff, Pearl, Larry, and a reluctant Squidward on her team. They were called Cowboy Force Two, and they would only fight if Bubble Force One failed. Though Sandy and Mandy were not overly happy with the idea of being apart, they were the strongest fighters. If they were both taken down at the same time, the town would be in serious trouble.

Before they broke into teams, SpongeBob suggested that everyone should have codenames in case their radios were hacked, and the squirrels actually agreed that it wasn't too bad of an idea. That said, everyone got a bit carried away with their handles. Very, very carried away.

"Boat Babe, Whale Woman, Beach Boy, Music Maestro…" Sandy addressed her team of Mrs. Puff, Pearl, Larry, and Squidward—in that order—to pull them together. "Ugh, this is just getting ridiculous. No more codenames. Did we get that report out about the twister rollin' through town?"

"I got it done in no time. Everyone is hiding in their homes," Larry handsomely smiled. "I saved the newscaster from drowning, after all. He owed me a favor."

"Great work. No wonder these streets are looking emptier than bottle of moonshine at a shindig. Everybody talk to Mr. Krabs about your places. He's my second in command, got it? I'm gonna make sure the other team is set," Sandy got on the radio. "Bubble Force One, this is Cowboy Force Two. Are you ready, over?"

"Getting there. We should be good in a matter of minutes. Are you good to go, over?" Mandy calmly responded.

"Yep. Ready as can be. Stay safe out there. And don't you _dare_ surrender and go with them. No matter what. You do that and all this will be for nothing. Promise me that you're gonna fight with me to the end, Tails…" Sandy held her breath as this transmission became personal.

"I promise you, sweetheart."

"Darn right you do. Now, don't be afraid to call on the backup plan, over."

"You either. I'll see you soon. Over…" Mandy stopped the message and addressed her crew. "Spatula Sponge, Fuzzy Feet, Super Sidekick, and…Eddie…" she paused with a nod to SpongeBob, Mermaid Man, Barnacle Boy, and Patrick in order of their cover names. She was just as fed up with the silliness as Sandy. "Get to your places. Cowboy Force Two is across town, so we are set to make first contact. Be ready. Remember that if something happens to me, SpongeBob will take command. Good?"

"Um, it's _Spatula Sponge_, Mandy," SpongeBob corrected her.

Mandy rolled her eyes. "Okay, Spatula Sponge is next in line for command. Got it?"

Patrick raised his hand. "What if something happens to him?"

"Barnacle Boy is next," Mandy decided. SpongeBob was about to speak when she cut across him. "I mean, _Super Sidekick_."

"What if something happens to him and it's just me and Fuzzy Feet?" Patrick continued with a glance at the snoring elderly super hero in the fuzzy slippers.

Mandy sighed. "Then we're screwed, _Eddie_."

Everyone on both teams got to their positions. Though nobody truly wanted to fight, they knew that there wouldn't be any other option. Everybody had their choice of weapon, such as Larry had his weights and Pearl had Mrs. Puff—to use the expandable teacher as a projectile at the incoming forces. Soon, they could all hear the hum of a nearby vessel. Mandy spotted the expensive submarine first.

"Bubble Force One, we have company," Mandy paused and quickly alerted the other team. "Cowboy Force Two, we have visual contact. Be at the ready, over."

"Roger that. Don't do anything stupid, honey pie. I can so hurt you," Sandy affectionately threatened her girlfriend. "Over and out."

The submarine was equipped with weapons and pods to deliver fighters to the ground. Before they could send ground troops, Mandy hoped that they could take down the sub. However, she knew that these people had the best technology and the best employees. She lifted her peanut gun and gave a signal for every to prepare for battle. Then, it began.

Mandy fired her weapon. SpongeBob launched a bubble attack. Patrick threw anything that he could his hands on. Barnacle Boy and Mermaid Man used their powers and gizmos. The submarine fired back. They traded fire for minutes on end. Bubble Force One barely made a dent in the sub, and they had several injuries. Mermaid Man was hit in the knee—which he was going to replace next Tuesday anyway—and Patrick had an issue with his arm. Buildings in Bikini Bottom were also being hit.

Soon, it was clear that this sub was going to get past them.

"Backup plan," Mandy shouted into the radio. "We're coming in hot. Taking the fight to you, over."

"Roger," Sandy nervously agreed. "See you soon, over."

Suddenly, the sub expelled a small group of fighters. These fighters belonged to the Family, and Mandy instantly recognized half of them. They were a bunch of rowdy ferrets in tuxedos with helmets, and they wanted _her_. Swallowing, Mandy knew that her dark side was ready to surface. Though she was a decent squirrel with a gentle heart, there was an untamed and brutal side to her…especially if her loved ones were at stake.

"Bunch together! Get behind me!" she barked at the team. They started to move towards her as she started shooting. It wasn't going to be a campy and lighthearted event like in 1970s comedies or 1980s music videos. Oh no, this was going to be war. "I said behind me! Move!"

Barnacle Boy and Patrick managed to drag Mermaid Man with them to safety while SpongeBob provided cover. The nervous sponge realized that a projectile was heading for his friends, so he found the courage to push them to safety. While Mandy and Patrick fell to the ground and the super heroes stumbled backwards, the sponge was hit. It was a bad wound that brought the yellow hero to the brink of death.

Furious, Mandy leapt to her feet. "Patrick, get SpongeBob. Barnacle Boy, you're in charge. Get them to Cowboy Force Two. I have a score to settle."

"But…you didn't use our codenames," Patrick softly commented as he scooped SpongeBob into his arms with tears in his eyes. "It can't be real unless you use our codenames. This just can't be real…"

"Keep it together. Get moving. That's the only way we'll stay in this fight and stay alive. Go," she ordered while Barnacle Boy assumed command.

While they escaped, Mandy stood alone in the middle of the road. The ferrets paused a distance from her, and their leader—a ferret she recognized as Snowball—gave her a malicious smile. "Hey there, _Amanda_. Been a long time. Do you want to come with us and end this before it gets messy?"

"I promised that I wouldn't. Besides, you just shot my best friend. Nobody, I mean _nobody_, messes with that sponge…except maybe Squidward Tentacles."

Shots echoed throughout Bikini Bottom.

Meanwhile, Bubble Force One rapidly made their way to the second team outside of the Krusty Krab. Upon seeing them, Larry's lifeguard instincts kicked in and he rushed to help Barnacle Boy with Mermaid Man. Sandy went to Patrick and gently set SpongeBob on the ground. His eyes were barely open, as he was in and out of consciousness.

"SpongeBob?" Sandy whispered with a strained voice. "Can you hear me, buddy?"

"Sandy?" he croaked. "Do you think they have grills in heaven?"

"Stop that nonsense. You're fine," Sandy felt tears and looked for her biggest comfort, but she wasn't there. "Wait, where's Mandy?"

Barnacle Boy shook his head. "Back there. She told us to go without her. It's bad. Real bad."

Sandy mentally cursed her girlfriend for pulling such a stunt, but she had to focus on her best buddies for a moment. She looked to Patrick first. "Go in the Krusty Krab and find somethin' from the kitchen like sauce or a patty. Maybe the smell will bring him 'round. _And don't eat it_."

Patrick left and Mr. Krabs emotionally checked on the yellow guy. "Kiddo?"

"Mr. Krabs," SpongeBob hoarsely coughed. "I don't think that I'll make it to work today."

"Don't worry about that, SpongeBob. You can have a sick day," the crustacean sniffled without even making a crack about unpaid time off.

It wasn't looking good.

Several minutes later, the submarine had appeared overhead. Apparently, it slipped past Mandy. They had no choice but to fight. Mermaid Man and SpongeBob were moved into the restaurant and Patrick insisted that he could go on with his injured arm. Solemnly, they prepared.

It started.

Larry threw weights, Pearl flung Mrs. Puff, Mr. Krabs sent thick law books into the air—ones describing required conditions and rights for employees, Squidward launched distasteful artwork, Patrick hurled anything that wasn't nailed down, and Sandy used her lassoes. The sub fought back, causing most people to scatter. That's when it all started to fall apart.

First, Mrs. Puff hit the submarine directly in the windshield only to be kicked to the ground. She bounced straight onto sharp rocks. Unmoving, the woman was completely unresponsive. Next, Mr. Krabs saw this and made an impulsive mad dash to her, and he tried to drag her to the safety of the Krusty Krab. In the process, he was hit in the shoulder. Painfully, it took him out of the fight. Then, the submarine launched a missile that hit between Larry and Pearl. They were flung aside with enough physical damage to incapacitate them. Finally, Barnacle Boy tripped over his own feet and snapped a hip—which he was going to have replaced next Thursday anyway.

Sandy, Patrick, and Squidward were the only ones left.

"Patrick and Squidward, get everyone inside!" Sandy snapped as the others didn't move. "_Eddie and Music Maestro_, get everyone inside the darn Krusty Krab!"

As they started to help the others into the establishment, Sandy kept fighting. She was fueled by the idea that Mandy _had _to be all right. If she were caught or dead, the sub wouldn't keep fighting. Minutes passed. The ninja squirrel kept going. She made a great deal of progress, but that was mostly because everyone else had weakened the sub. Then, out of the blue, she saw it.

Mandy Tails.

The battered squirrel was limping and covered in marks, but she was alive and ready for action. Without a word, she joined Sandy and they continued to battle. Sandy had never seen this side of her girlfriend before. It was grave. Dangerous. Brutal. Oddly attractive.

While they fought side by side, both of them knew that they needed a strategy. There was no way they'd be able to win this way. That's when Mandy thought of it.

"Can you hover with me on your back?" she questioned over the noisy battle.

Sandy saw where this was going. "You want us to hover up there, with them shooting at us, and get on that sub to take them out up close and personal?"

"Yeah. We just have to take down the pilot."

"That's the craziest, riskiest plan I've ever heard…and I am so happy you thought of it. Let's go."

Together, they scaled the Krusty Krab and Mandy leapt onto Sandy's back. With a mighty leap, Sandy used her lasso to make them both hover towards the sub. Dodging oncoming fire, they landed on the windshield and Mandy reached to the pilot's throat. She threw him out and the sub began to go down. Sandy grabbed her and they floated to safety as a dramatic light show and submarine explosion lighted their silhouettes.

With the machine down and the ground troops eliminated by Mandy, the battle was over. They had won.

The squirrels hugged as if they'd never let go again, but that wasn't the case. Mandy let go for one second. She simply glanced at the Krusty Krab for her friends, her grasp upon Sandy slipping backwards. Yes, it was merely _a single second_ away from her girlfriend. That was all. One. Doggone. Second. Mandy never thought that such a _small _amount of time could make such a _huge_ difference.

Sandy was torn to the Chum Bucket.

A powerful device was calibrated to attract the metal in Sandy's suit, and it held her to the exterior wall of the Chum Bucket as a magnetic restraint. Mandy's suit was made of a rubber-like material, which Plankton only knew from talking to the Family about her gear, so the device didn't attract her. Instead, Mandy remained firmly in front of the Krusty Krab, and she could hardly process the sudden turn of events. Then, the grey squirrel ran as fast as she could towards her girl, but an electric fence surrounded the Chum Bucket.

The Texan was trapped inside it.

Mandy still tried to go through the barrier, but it was too painful—even for someone with her training. Sandy remained stuck to the restaurant, and Mandy remained desperate. She kept trying, kept wincing, kept pushing, kept hoping…

"Ha-ha!" Plankton clapped as he made his appearance. "For once, a plan goes perfectly! _I told you, Karen_!" he cleared his throat and pointed at Mandy. "You idiot! Did you really think that it'd be so easy to stop them? That was the _distraction_."

Theatrically, a larger submarine appeared overhead.

"Here's the deal, squirrel," Plankton continued. "They are going to take your precious girlfriend unless you surrender to us. We will let her go without harming the fur on her head. We really will. But, you have to come here right now."

"Don't do it," Sandy passionately argued. "Don't you do it, Tails."

"Sandy, I can't let them take you. You know what they'd do."

"But they'd do worse to you. We both know that."

"That'd be nothing compared to how it'd feel to lose you, especially to them," Mandy looked to the tiny green creature with daggers in her eyes. "I'll come quietly. Let her go."

Plankton lowered the electric fence. "Come to me slowly."

She slowly moved forward and he used a tiny gizmo to hold the squirrel in place. True to his word, Plankton released Sandy Cheeks from his device. He knew that Mandy wouldn't talk if he betrayed their deal, but he also knew that Sandy would try to stop them. Thus, he activated _another_ electric fence. This time, it was smaller. It only surrounded Mandy and a path to the Chum Bucket entrance. Sandy tried to get through it, but it was no use. Plankton sharply tugged Mandy towards his establishment, victorious.

With a fretful smile, Mandy nodded to her girlfriend. "I love you, sweet cheeks."

Just like that, Mandy Tails was gone.


	13. Chapter 13

_**Thirteen: "I'll keep you safer"**_

"All right, boys," Plankton radioed the submarine. "I'll have my thirty minutes and then I'll send her up to you."

"Uh-huh," the leader confirmed.

Plankton sat across from Mandy with a victorious grin. "Well, well. Here we are. I have a few questions for you—"

Suddenly, a large group of ferrets flooded into the lab from all angles. Plankton had no time to react. They seized Mandy, destroyed almost all of the equipment, and locked Plankton in a tin can. In the claustrophobic space, Plankton realized that Karen was right. The Family had betrayed him. They only needed to use him to draw in Mandy. Panicked, it took the desperate protozoan several minutes to escape the can and look around. Karen had been hit.

"Karen! No!" Plankton ran to her and quickly found some tools. "Don't worry, babe. I'll get you back and you'll tell me all about how I was wrong…" he stopped and realized just how bad it was.

In that moment, he started to reconsider which side he should be on.

Outside, Sandy stared at the Chum Bucket with tears in her eyes. Was this really happening? Out of nowhere, she saw the malicious ferrets crash into Plankton's lab. Before she could register this turn of events, the ferrets returned to their sub with Mandy in custody. Once the sub tore away at top speed, it finally hit her. Mandy was actually gone.

The tough squirrel considered curling into a ball and sobbing uncontrollably, but she had an entire group of wounded friends to care for and a girlfriend to save. She knew that if Mandy were in her position, the Northerner stop at nothing until she saved the day.

So, Sandy burst into the Krusty Krab to make the painful announcement.

"Mandy's gone."

"We saw…" Larry winced as he plucked bits of metal from his side. "So sorry, Sandy."

"It ain't over yet. Not for me. Y'all did great work today. I really appreciate that you put yourselves on the line for us."

Barnacle Boy shrugged. "It wasn't about you two. It was about all of us. As corny as that sounds. This is our town. Our friends. We couldn't back away from that."

"It's our duty to stop _EVIL_!" Mermaid Man added in a loud shout. "Did we stop Man Ray from getting the cookies?"

His sidekick groaned. "Go back to sleep, you rusted antique."

Sandy gave a tiny smile at her pals and quickly found her way to Mr. Krabs, as she couldn't see SpongeBob or Patrick anywhere. The crab was seated beside Mrs. Puff and delicately doctoring her wounds, but there was something in his eyes that Sandy didn't like. "Mr. Krabs?"

"The boy isn't looking good," he emotionally explained.

Even Mrs. Puff had emotion in her eyes. "I've always wanted SpongeBob to go somewhere far, far, far, far, _far_ away and never see him again, but I didn't want him to _die_. I'm not that harsh. Most of the time…"

"He isn't going to die," Sandy forcefully snapped. "Where is he?"

"Me office. Please try to save him. He's the best fry cook there is," Mr. Krabs continued to tend to Mrs. Puff while Sandy went.

Upon entering the office, she discovered the sponge lying on Mr. Krabs' desk. Patrick stood near his head, but she was shocked to find Squidward sitting next to him in Mr. Krabs' chair. "How's he doing, fellas?"

"Real bad," Patrick quietly sobbed. "You think a bandaid would help him? I've got a few in my pocket. I could pick the lint off of 'em…"

"That's sweet of you, Pat, but I don't think we'll need those. I've got the knowhow to fix him upright," Sandy assured them, although she wasn't too confident herself. "Patrick, I need you to get me some hot water. Squidward, I need you to get me something to put under him."

While Patrick left, Squidward stayed, stone-faced.

"Squidward," Sandy repeated.

He kept looking at the sponge. "I've hated him for years. Wished a lot of terrible things on him. And laughed when they happened. Laughed really, really hard. But…"

"We'll save him, okay? I need your full attention to be on right here and right now."

"This is _SpongeBob_. He might actually die_._ Yes, okay, he is the most annoying, loud, childish, oblivious, disruptive, intrusive, unbearable person I have ever met in my life. I have wished that his house would burn down or they'd lock him away in an insane asylum so I would never see him again. _Never ever again_. But, he's the nicest person I know. I am terrible to him. And he _still _cares. He still wants to dance with me. He still wants to share a milkshake. He stillcalls me his favorite SquidSquid. I don't know if that makes him sweet or just plain stupid. Probably both.

"So, maybe…maybe I don't hate him. Maybe he drives me crazy and I don't mind it. Maybe I even like it. To think we were just sharing that drink this morning and now he might never see tonight…I've never said how I really feel. I didn't say how much I liked _our_ milkshake, Sandy. And now I'm sitting here, watching him slowly slip away…no more sleepless nights or headaches or interrupted rehearsals. Just an empty pineapple and unmanned grill…my God, the _silence_! The _silence_ and _misery_! No cackling laughter. No horribly cheerful sponge. Just nothing. Me, left alone in a quiet, dejected tiki—"

Sandy shook the octopus by the shoulders. "Snap out of it, Squidward. This ain't some movie and you're not up for some Oscar. We won't save him with you losing your head, all right? Do you think that I'm fine and dandy when my honey is out there somewhere? You think that I'm peachy? No. I'm a whole can of peaches short of a cobbler. They're gonna kill her if I don't get to her soon. And I am gonna get to her, just like we're gonna save this sponge. So, help me or leave. I don't got time for bellyaching."

Without a word, Squidward got up to help Sandy's operation. Though most of her tools were at the Treedome, she was resourceful enough to get moving in Mr. Krabs' office. Patrick and Squidward assisted her in the simple operation to save the sponge. For a while, it was touch and go. Nobody dared to speak. Then, the moment came.

Success.

The sponge obviously needed some time to sleep and recover, so they left him on Mr. Krabs' desk…with a very shaken up and confused octopus at his side.

As Sandy expected, the others were too spent to help her find Mandy. She couldn't do it alone, so she took Patrick into the kitchen for a serious chat and to patch his achy arm. "I need your help, Patrick. I need to get to Mandy before it's too late…"

**-Flashback-**

"I think this plan is gonna work," Sandy told Mandy with faulty confidence. They were in the Treedome only hours before the attack occurred on Bikini Bottom. "We got this, Tails. No worries."

"Wait a second," Mandy sighed as her hands caught Sandy's fingers. "I want you to understand something. You know this scar on my side? _They_ gave it to me. I'll spare you the details. Just know that they train members of the Family to handle unpleasant situations. So, this scar is what they do to people _in _the Family, Sandy. Imagine what they'll do to others, especially ones that betrayed them. If you're caught…"

"I won't be. Neither will you."

Mandy faintly smiled. "I hope you're right. But, if they get me, don't come for me. I mean it."

"How can I promise that?"

"You have to, sweet cheeks. Like I said, I'm trained to handle it."

Sandy paused and swallowed dread. "I'm not promising you a darn thing. If you're caught, I'm coming for you just like you'd come for me."

"I can't change your mind, can I?"

"Haven't we been over this? I get my way," the Texan stopped with a vacant smile and fearfully looked at her girl. "If they caught you, would they…"

"Yeah," Mandy confirmed and briskly kissed her. "But, like you said, we won't be caught. We'll win. Nobody has to die today."

**-Present time-**

"She's in real danger and we're running out of time," Sandy told Patrick with pleading eyes. "I can't do it alone. Would you help me?"

"I see," Patrick hummed and eventually nodded. "I'm in."

"Thank you so much, buddy. I have to talk to Squidward. I don't think SpongeBob will be up to it. If you could let everyone know how he's doin' and check on them for me…" she waited for his nod of approval, and then she hugged the pink star and started for the office.

Squidward hadn't moved an inch, and he knew exactly what was coming next. "You want me to help you again, am I right?"

"That's the notion."

"You're going to get yourself killed."

"It's better than living with the fact that I didn't try," Sandy sat on the desk and took SpongeBob's other hand, as Squidward…had the other? "Look, I made a promise to Mandy. I told her that I'd keep her safer. See, she always said she'd keep me safe, and that's what she just did. So I am going to keep her _safer_. No matter what I got to do."

Quietly, he carefully observed her. "You know, the two of you fascinate me. It's not just the girl-on-girl thing. No, it's how you _are_. Like nobody else exists. It's so adorable that it makes me physically nauseated. And I want that. How'd you get that kind of relationship?"

"It happened. That's how it works. You don't look for it. It comes to you. And, I don't want it to go away. I don't want to lose her. I need help, Squidward."

"Those people aren't messing around. Do you think anyone will walk out of there?"

"I don't know. I hope so. Our chances would be a heck of a lot better if you were on our side."

Squidward deeply sighed. "You're aren't going to give up until I agree to help, are you?"

"Well, it's either help me or I tell SpongeBob all about what you said earlier."

"No, no. No need for, uh, _that_. Heh. You don't have to tell him a thing. I'll help."

"Thank you," Sandy glanced at her sickly yellow friend and allowed a single tear to slither into her helmet. "I thought we were gonna lose him. I already lost her. You know what really grinds my gears? Her last words to me were: _I love you, sweet cheeks. _That's the first time she's ever said that, and I couldn't say it back."

Squidward cringed at his gentle side. "There, there. It can't be too hard to find a squirrel and some ferrets in the ocean. Then, you'll be able to say anything you want to her in that deplorable accent of yours."

The odd friends shared a mutual smile and sat in silence. Soon, Patrick rushed in to hold vigil over his dear friend. For one hour, Sandy mentally planned a rescue mission and everyone waited to see how SpongeBob was doing. The yellow guy finally opened his eyes and groggily blinked at the smiling faces. Patrick, Sandy, and Squidward hadn't left the room or even moved an inch for the entire sixty minutes.

"Hey," the sponge enthusiastically announced…as enthusiastically as someone could sound in his position. "Did we win?"

Sandy gravely shook her head. "No, little buddy. They got Mandy."

"What? We have to save her!" SpongeBob went to move, but Patrick was quick to hold him down.

"No, SpongeBob! You have to rest!" the star frantically explained. "Sandy had to fix your squishy parts."

The sponge scoffed. "I'm tough as tough can be. I'll have you know that I once got a drop of sriracha in my eye and I only passed out for seventeen hours."

"He's right. You can't go," Sandy attempted. "You're awful weak and sick. Your stitches might come out if you move a lot. I'm sorry, but you gotta stay here, SpongeBob."

"But…but…" he stuttered as tears formed in his eyes. "Sandy, this is Mandy. Our Mandy."

"I know. But, Patrick and Squidward said they'd help."

"Oh no. Then I'm definitely going. I'm not letting everyone I care about go out there without me. No way no how no sir!"

Sandy smirked and worried that he'd just come anyway. "Well, we'll see, okay? I have to finish getting my plan together as soon as I can."

"Great! You watch. I'll be better in no time!" SpongeBob assured her.

Smiling, Sandy left to use the kitchen as a thinking space. Patrick sat with SpongeBob and Squidward until he had to use the bathroom, at which point Squidward had a nervous second with the yellow guy. "So…you doing okay?"

"Much better," SpongeBob assured him. "Thanks for staying with me, Squidward."

"I, uh, I'm…I just want to say that I'm glad you're okay."

"Really? You mean it?"

"Yes. I mean it."

"You really, really mean it?"

"_Yes, I mean it._"

"But do you really, really, really mean it?"

Squidward exploded. "SpongeBob! Stop asking me if I mean it! I mean it, okay? You are so annoying!"

"Sorry…" SpongeBob sniffled.

The octopus grinned and squeezed his hand. "I'm so glad you're back."

In the dining room, the doors to the Krusty Krab flew open while Plankton crawled inside on hands and knees. Mr. Krabs flew through the air and snatched the intruder by his antennae. With a mighty holler, he summoned the Texan. "Sandy! I think you'll want to do the honors this time!"

Sandy entered from the kitchen, glared at Plankton, and darted towards him to wrap her fist about his waist. Squeezing until Plankton's eye poked forward, her words were grave and dangerous. "How dare you show your ugly mug in these parts! I ought to hogtie you and hang you from the nearest street sign 'til you starve to death."

"That's a little harsh," Plankton anxiously chuckled. "Listen, Cheeks. I want to apologize. I didn't know who I was dealing with. I need your help. I'll do whatever you want. I'll even help you get the other squirrel back. Just please. _Please_. I don't know where else to go."

As Plankton broke into sobs, Sandy was suspicious. "This has to be some sort of trick."

"No, it's not. Those jerks double-crossed me! All I wanted was to ask your girlfriend about the secret formula. I saw her working here and figured she'd know something. When those horrible things contacted me accidentally, we struck a deal. I'd get Mandy, talk for thirty minutes, and they'd pick her up. They didn't let me talk to her! They came in, smashed the place, and took your squirrel. But, that's not why I'm here. I'm here because they hurt my wife. Karen's going offline for good! I need your help to save her."

"Why should I save your wife when you handed my girl to _those _people?"

"Because you're the good guy. You save people even if they've hurt you."

"Good guys don't have to be good all the time."

Plankton paused. She had a point. So, he begged. "Please, squirrel! Please! I'll do anything. I can't live without Karen. Sure, we don't have the best relationship. She _nags and nags and nags_. She never believes in me. She's always complaining about something. But, that's marriage. I need the old ball and chain. I just can't live the single life. Don't you see? I'm a husband not a swinger. I'll help you get the girl if you help me. I'm desperate here."

"Fine," Sandy ultimately decided. "You try anything, I'll be scraping you off my boot. And you better deliver, buster. If I lose Mandy, you'll be on my list. That is not a place you want to be."

"All right, whatever," Plankton groaned in response. "Now, let's go! My wifey is _dying_ in there!"

"Yeah, yeah. We have to get moving if I'm gonna save Mandy too," Sandy added while she sprinted towards the Chum Bucket.

"Don't worry, squirrel. The ferrets planned to keep her alive a while. Not sure if that happened or not. It's what they told me, at least."

Sandy glanced down at the tiny creature. "What else did they say?"

"Let's just say that she isn't being treated like a VIP in a five star hotel."

"How long did they want to…"

"Four days."

Swallowing, Sandy was more motivated than ever.

Those ferrets were in for it now.


	14. Chapter 14

_**Fourteen: Have to Try**_

Any doubts Sandy had about Plankton's sincerity disappeared when she saw the Chum Bucket lab. The place was trashed and his computer wife was in serious trouble. Together, Plankton and Sandy managed to save Karen fairly quickly. While the married couple had a moment to be disgustingly affectionate, Sandy dug around for any equipment she could use. Soon, the new parts and gadgets helped to complete her plan.

Sandy had a shot and saving her favorite squirrel.

True to his word, Plankton gave her useful information and agreed to help in some way. Sandy took both Plankton and Karen back to the Krusty Krab, as she wanted to be sure that someone kept an eye on the ailing computer. Squidward and Patrick helped the weak sponge enter the dining room when Sandy got back, as they all knew she was ready to announce the plan.

"Listen up, critters. Here's how this is gonna go. Mr. Krabs, I want you to look after all the hurt folks here in the Krusty Krab. If somethin' goes wrong with my plan, I don't want those slippery scuzzballs to come back 'round to take you out once and for all. Hunker down. Nobody in or out, got it?"

"Aye," Mr. Krabs tiredly agreed. "But, I'm losing a lot of money keeping this place closed…"

Sandy rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll pay you a hospital fee later. Just keep everyone safe, including Karen, all right?"

The crab nodded and SpongeBob finally stood on his own. "What's the plan, Sandy? I'm ready!"

"You're gonna take it easy if you're with us. No playin' hero again. I'm going to round up my equipment and tell you the plan once we're mobile. Cool your heels here for a bit. I'll be right back."

The squirrel promptly jogged to the Treedome to retrieve her resources.

A few minutes later, Squidward spotted a giant shadow above them. "Here we go. Squirrels and their toys…"

Sandy's robotic pterodactyl vessel landed near the restaurant, and she quickly got the task force inside of its control room. Squidward, SpongeBob, and Patrick sat in the seats behind the pilot's chair while Plankton stood on the control board like a hula girl stuck to the dash of a trucker's semi. The squirrel revealed her genetic tracker and several other gizmos.

"Plankton says they're gonna use the submarine to get all of the way to a secret airbase in Chile so they can fly to New England on the down low. They have a hefty head start, but my mechanical dinosaur can move so fast it'll make your head spin like a cheap carnival ride at the state fair. I can find their exact location with this tracker. It specifically finds Mandy's DNA. We follow it, get over there, and execute the rescue plan. It's risky, but we have to try…"

Everyone sat in a solemn silence. It felt like they were gambling with their lives, but everyone agreed with Sandy. Mandy needed to be rescued and they had a definite score to settle. Though their craft did move at a dizzying pace, Mandy's location was at least a few hours away. So, Sandy used the time to provide a detailed outline of their mission.

"That's it in a nutshell. Any questions, boys?"

"I have one," Squidward raised his tentacle. "Do you have a _death wish_?"

"I said it'd be risky."

"No, no—risk is one thing. This is just idiocy. I have no idea how it'll work."

"A dash of good luck and craziness. If we're gonna beat the bad guys, we have to think like a bad guy…" she tried to explain, but Plankton was clearly the only one who understood.

He waved his little arms to get their attention. "The hick is right. This could work. No time for complaining. We have to be ready for destruction."

"But…does this make us bad?" SpongeBob wondered. "I want to get Mandy back, but I don't want to be a bad guy."

"No, we aren't the bad guys. We're good guys. Just bein' a little naughty," Sandy assured the yellow man.

Patrick pointed a finger in Sandy's direction. "She's turning to the dark side!"

"I am not. I just aim to misbehave. Now, we'll be there at any minute. Get into position."

Soon, their dinosaur was in visual range of the giant submarine. Sandy nodded to her group to begin their plan. They snuck up from behind and opened fire with weapons from the Chum Bucket and Sandy's Treedome. However, the attack did not cause any real damage. They tried to get into the sub's blind spot and target its weakest points. They were like a lion trying to spot the lame gazelle in the herd, but even with Plankton's knowledge they couldn't find the sub's vulnerabilities. All the while, the enemy fired back at the dinosaur robot and caused extensive damage.

It was heating up. Fast.

Everyone flew about the inside of the dinosaur. Sparks lit up the hazy cockpit like fireworks in the July sky. Patrick was tossed into the engine room, Squidward caught SpongeBob before the sponge toppled into a broken and hazardous circuit board, and Sandy tried to cut the wheel to avoid another blast…and failed. They were jumbled around like change in someone's pocket.

"Sandy!" Patrick shouted as he made his way towards her. "I saw Plankton just leave! He slipped out and he's gone! He left us!"

"Phase two, everyone."

"But Sandy—"

"_Phase two_, Pat. Keep your head on straight," she commanded without slowing down or acknowledging Patrick's terror. She was in the zone and that's all that mattered. A fire burned and wires fizzed. Squidward rushed to stop the flames and SpongeBob leapt to man a tiny cannon. "Fire, SpongeBob!"

The projectile nailed the sub in one of its propellers, but the ferrets had so many that it didn't make a difference. Their plan of attack, to sneak about and hit them where it hurt, was failing. Miserably. It had a chance to be a fair fight, given that the pterodactyl had some decent weapons and they knew all about the sub's schematics, but clearly it was not. They traded missiles and hits for over twenty minutes before the pterodactyl was blanketed by smoke and defeat.

They had lost.

"This is Sandy Cheeks," she opened the channel to the sub with bleary eyes. "We're on our last leg over here. I'll admit that. But, you have my girlfriend in there. We'll surrender peacefully if I can just see her one more time."

"No! We can't!" SpongeBob shouted with his hands on her shoulders. "Sandy, what are you doing?!"

"I don't wanna be around a bunch of ferrets!" Patrick loudly cried from the back of the vessel.

Squidward slowly blinked. "Rodents and their plans…"

"Look, we'll die anyhow. We keep fighting, we're gonna go down and become little bits. We get taken, we're gonna be killed. I'd rather see my girlfriend and get to tell her how I feel and maybe have a nicer death than blowing up. That's all I want."

The sponge sniffled and nodded. "Okay, Sandy…we all surrender."

"Fine," Smoky, the commander ferret, didn't sound the least bit interested or moved by the conversations on the dinosaur. "We'll dock with your ship. Be ready for capture. And don't try anything funny. We shoot first and don't care about asking later."

Ferrets entered with weapons pointed at Patrick, Squidward, SpongeBob, and Sandy. They put their hands in the air and somberly followed the ferrets onto their submarine. The ferrets put the sea creatures in wet suits, simply because they wanted to keep them alive until they had enough time to think of a wonderfully dramatic death for the ocean dwellers. However, they wouldn't let Sandy take off her suit, fearing that she may be too agile to handle without it.

As they walked and walked, Squidward glanced at Sandy with a glare. "Yeah,_ great plan, _Sandy."

"Shut up!" one of the ferrets commanded. "No talking. Keep going. I like things nice and quiet like…"

"Are we going to die?" Patrick nervously asked nobody in particular. "I have a busy schedule today, and I don't have time for dying."

"_Shut up_!" the ferret repeated. "Didn't you hear me the first time, pink points? I'm in charge here and what I want goes."

"We better be quiet, Patrick. Ferrets are nasty creatures! And so stinky too," SpongeBob loudly whispered.

The ferret stopped and readied his weapon. "I will put more holes in you than you already have, sponge. Just watch me."

"You leave that sponge alone, mister," Sandy threatened.

"You heard her," Squidward agreed, swallowing when SpongeBob looked at him with bright eyes.

"What are you going to do about it? You're all cuffed," the ferret smugly laughed.

"Oh, you're right," Sandy anxiously frowned. "It's not like I have a laser in my suit or anything."

In a flash, Sandy activated her laser and shed the cuffs. It didn't take long for her to handle the ferret and free her pals. SpongeBob rubbed his wrists with a frown. "We lied to them and invaded their ship. That wasn't very nice."

Patrick stopped for a moment with a confused expression. "Wait, none of this was real? This was all a plan? We were _supposed _tofail and get captured?"

"Lying is okay if you're lying to a bad guy, SpongeBob. And, yes, it was a plan, Patrick. We explained that to you six times. Focus," Sandy shed her helmet and quickly got on the radio. "We're in, Plankton. How are things?"

"Perfect!" Plankton laughed from his tiny and well-armed craft. "They didn't even notice me. I'm hovering underneath you guys. This is exhilarating! Vengeance will be mine!"

"Yeah, cut the dramatics. This is far from over. It's going according to plan now, but you never know," she turned off the radio and consulted the tracker. "Looks like Mandy's on the top level. Plankton didn't get much about the interior layout before, but he knows the cargo bay is on the bottom of the ship and the bridge is in the forward section. I cross-referenced that information with submarine designs in—"

"I hate to interrupt this riveting lecture, but we are on the clock," Squidward dryly reminded her. "Your point?"

"The engine room is in the back. Second floor. You three, go to those engines and wait for my signal. _Don't touch anything_. Not until I say. Squidward, you're in charge."

SpongeBob was busying trying to keep Patrick from pushing the fire alarm, so Squidward slowly nodded to Sandy in agreement. "Good choice. I'd be sushi and you'd be gravy if we left those two in charge. We'll wait for your signal."

The three men left for the engine room while Sandy followed the tracker. She shiftily avoided the ferrets as much as possible, though she had to subdue a few here and there. Once she got to the holding cell, she was faced with two guards. Using her lasso, she roped them together and moved forward for a sharp karate chop on their heads. They were knocked out and she was free to steal their keys. Then, she anxiously let herself into the cell and prepared herself for whatever was behind the door.

"Mandy," Sandy whispered in relief and horror. The squirrel was tied to a chair and clearly had endured some…unpleasant…treatment. At least she was alive, but she wasn't well off. Sandy went to her girl and sunk to her level, carefully tracing her cheek. "Mandy, it's me."

Groggily, Mandy blinked and smiled. "Sandy? What are you doing here?"

"Just thought I'd stop by for tea. Why do you think? I'm getting you out and taking you home like I told you I would," she rapidly untied Mandy and kissed her bloodied mouth. "You're a sight for sore eyes, Tails. Are you mostly in one piece?"

"Eh, mostly. I've been better, but I've been _way _worse. How are you? Are you okay?"

"I'm good now that you're with me. SpongeBob and everybody else are okay too. We're ready to end this," Sandy wasn't about to waste another second. "By the way, I sort of love you."

"Really? What a coincidence. I kind of love you too."

As they were about to share another kiss, Sandy's radio crackled with SpongeBob's whispered voice. "Sandy, they're getting really close to finding us…"

"I've got Mandy. Squidward, phase three. Plankton, are you on the horn?"

"I'm here. Phase three confirmed. Waiting for your signal, hillbilly."

Carefully, Sandy freed Mandy from the restraints. She felt her heart crack when she saw her girlfriend wince and limp. Even with all the damage and pain, Mandy stood on her own feet and walked without needing assistance. Yep, this was obviously _not_ the first time the former-criminal faced such horrid treatment. Not at all.

In the engine room, Patrick readied his aim. The plan was for Patrick to throw a heavy item at the main engine, and SpongeBob and Squidward would work together to overload it from the circuits simultaneously. By now, the threesome had knocked out every ferret in the room thanks to Patrick's belly flop. At this point, the star looked to Squidward for the signal. When it was given, Patrick flung a spare part at the engine while the other two hit every button on the circuit board at once. Though the engine was almost destroyed, there was a backup generator that was not expected.

"Sandy! It's back! It's like a zombie!" Patrick frantically shouted into the radio.

Mandy and Sandy were hiding in the air vent, as the guards realized that Mandy was missing faster than anticipated. Not sure how to proceed, Sandy looked to her girl. "Do you know how to shut this sucker down?"

"Yeah," Mandy reached for the radio to talk them through it. "It's Mandy. Squidward, stay with the circuit board. Hit all of the buttons in order, left to right, and then reverse it, right to left. Patrick, instead of hitting the main engine, go for the fuel line. Throw something at it. Anything. It'll be too thick to cut through and too difficult to unscrew."

"You got it, Mandy! Welcome back!" SpongeBob happily answered.

However, Patrick was still panicked. "Where's the fuel line? I don't even have something to throw! The spare part is all smashed and stuff."

"Patrick, that's the fuel line," Squidward irritably told him. He pointed at the large tube and big sign that read: _Fuel Line. _"As for something to throw, I have no idea."

SpongeBob stepped forward. "Throw me."

"_No_," Squidward snapped while the sponge pouted.

"But Patrick has done it before when we're playing. What other choices do we have? Everything is bolted down and we don't have time to look for anything else. I'll be fine. I'm a sponge. I'll bounce."

"You won't be heavy enough," Squidward argued, although he was just concerned about the yellow guy being hurt again.

"So I'll throw him real hard. Like I did the other day when I threw him at you. You went right into the ground and stuff. This'll be just like that," Patrick decided as he grabbed SpongeBob by an arm and a leg. "Ready?"

Defeated, Squidward went with it.

In the air vent, Mandy and Sandy were quickly making their way to the cargo bay. The sub lurched and the lights went out. They had succeeded in destroying the engine. It was time for phase four, the final stage. Mandy and Sandy made a break for it, and the others did the same. Dodging ferrets and rolling around the rapidly sinking ship, the squirrels literally ran into the boys in a jumble of limbs. They all stood and rushed to the cargo bay.

"Plankton! We're here!" Sandy shrilled shouted into the radio.

"Okay, I'm docked. Just jump in!"

Sure enough, the small vessel was docked and ready for their escape. Everyone barely squeezed into it and they started to leave the submarine. That sub was sinking fast and they were getting away. It was over. Their celebration began…and quickly ended.

A final missile hit their ship and they were going down too.


	15. Chapter 15

_**Fifteen: The Last Stand**_

"Is everyone okay?" Mandy anxiously called to the people in their wrecked vessel.

"Fine and dandy," Sandy spoke.

"I'm here," Patrick answered.

"I'm in one piece," Squidward dryly responded.

SpongeBob uncomfortably squeaked. "Well, I've been better. I think that the pain started when Patrick threw me into the fuel line."

"He what?" Sandy and Mandy shrieked at the same time.

Squidward made an exasperated gesture. "My point exactly!"

"That was just plain dumb," Sandy groaned. "You're out of the fight, SpongeBob. Stay here and see if the guns still work."

"Excuse me," Plankton shouted from his booster seat in the pilot's chair. "Nobody asked how I'm doing."

"Can someone explain why that pest is here?" Mandy finally had the chance to ask.

Plankton took offense. "Who are you calling a pest, _rodent_?"

"Stop it! We have to all be friends," SpongeBob insisted. "How _are _you, Plankton?"

"Well…my back is a little sore…"

"Is it? That's terrible!" the sweet yellow guy replied.

Sandy rolled her eyes and pointed out the window. "See that? A bunch of ferrets in suits are starting to escape the wreckage. We have to act now. Like I said, SpongeBob stays here on the guns. Plankton, you try to get this thing working. The rest of you are with me. We gotta push them back. Stand our ground. And nobody get killed."

"Yeah, have luck with that," Plankton laughed and instantly stopped when the glares pointed in his direction.

Together, the four fighters bravely went outside. The surviving ferrets were closing in quickly, so they didn't have much time to come up with a strategy. For this, Sandy looked to her girlfriend. "Mandy, you know these varmints better than me. What should we do?"

"Well, there's a strict hierarchy in the Family. If we can get to the leader, we can get to all of them. I know him very well. Smoky and I spent a lot of time together back in the day. He'll stay in hiding as long as possible, but he'll definitely come out if we can make him angry enough."

"Send Patrick. His stupidity will have them infuriated in no time," Squidward suggested with a squawking chuckle.

Mandy lightly shoved him. "Be nice to my pink guy. Even if it's kind of true. Anyway, those ferrets stick together. If we can capture the crew, he'll come out to defend them. I'll take it from there."

In agreement, they spread out. It wasn't pretty. Without any true weapons, they were left with hand-to-hand combat. Even Sandy had to hold off on her rope. She had to be sure it stayed in one piece for later. Sandy chopped, Mandy punched, SpongeBob used the stun gun from inside the vessel, Patrick flopped, and Squidward spun. It was Squidward's tentacles that gathered the most ferrets, as he could easily spin about and use multiple appendages to stir things up like an automatic blender.

Soon, they had most every ferret in a pile.

With ease, Sandy lassoed the disoriented group and Mandy savagely took down the stragglers. Now, it was time for the last stand. Somehow, Mandy always knew that it would come down to a showdown between her and Smoky. It wasn't something she looked forward to, but she was fairly confident. Without his submarine, technology, or support staff, Smoky would have to rely on his skillset…or lack thereof.

Mandy stepped closer to the broken sub and beckoned to her former boss, trying to sound as intimidating as possible. "Smoky, we've caught your crew! If you don't get out here, I'm going to take them prisoner. They'll be stuck in a tiny cage with Barry Manilow on the speakers all day and all night. You don't want that. It's your job to protect the Family, remember? So, you get into this water and face me like a true ferret or they'll have to hear '_Looks like we made it' _on repeat!"

After a minute, the sleazy critter in a necktie and helmet sunk into view. "Amanda Tails. You know, I was going to visit you in your cell, but your shifty girlfriend beat me to the punch. Well, I suppose it's good just to see you after all this time. I haven't heard from you since we sent your uncle to the big oak tree in the sky. That was some day. Beautiful weather. Mr. Fluffles sends his regards."

"The old don himself. How many wives has he had by now? He was on number eight before I left, but I know that he had a hit out on her. Such a shame. She was a looker."

"Yeah, she was gorgeous at her funeral. It was open casket. His ninth wife looked fantastic too when she attended the service. Of course, they weren't officially married until the death certificate went through. He's on wife number eleven now. Cute chipmunk. Got married this spring."

"Oh, that's great. Tell him congratulations. Where was it this time? The woods or that really nice house in Connecticut?"

"Up in Maine. Lovely afternoon. He cried. She cried. I cried. Very moving. You should have been there. Your violin was great for his sixth wedding."

"That was fantastic. Out in Albany. Moonlit service. Open bird seed bar, only one gunfight…"

Smoky sighed at the memories. "Only five fatalities, and that perfect cake…"

"Yep. So, when are you going to stop trying to kill me?"

"Right, _that_. We won't stop until you get what you deserve. You double-crossed the Family when we trusted you. You were our rising star, the best scientist in New England, unflappable and unapologetic—a perfect criminal. We gave you everything. Money, equipment, a lab, a fancy car, an endless supply of peanuts, the list goes on."

"You can't buy me, Smoky. I only worked with you to save my uncle. The one you gave a cement tail and dropped into the pond at the park. You know that I was never meant to hurt people or break the law. I wasn't cut out for that life from the start. Was it really a surprise when I ran? The Family should have seen that coming from a mile away."

Smoky scoffed. "You seemed pretty dedicated to me. Do I have to remind you of what you did in Cambridge? That bird, waking up to a hard-boiled egg…"

"Mr. Fluffles threatened to get my cousin stuffed as a novelty hunting trophy. Kandy Tails would have been forever stuck in an orange reflective vest with a double-barrel shotgun on some redneck's mantel. I couldn't let that happen," Mandy intensely insisted. "Look, Smoky. I'm not a threat to you. I won't tell anyone anything. Even if I did, I'm _under the sea_. Who'd come after you? Annoyed anemones or bloodthirsty blowfish? No, the Family is safe. We can forget this whole thing. If you don't want to do that, then I'll have no other option. This'll have to get ugly."

He snickered in a menacing way. "Well, it's a shame. I can't back down, Mandy. Not now. Not after all the effort we've put into you. But, I do wish that there was another way. I don't want to duke it out with you. I really don't. We could have been something, you know. You went and threw that away."

"Here we go. It always comes back to the rejection. So what if I didn't want to go to a baseball game? Get over it, Smoky. You're not exactly my type, and you should know that _I_ _hate the Yankees_. I'm a Sox fan, you nitwit."

"That's it! Forget the memories. This ends now. You and me. Old-school."

In a flash, Mandy and Smoky moved towards each other. When the fight truly began, Sandy and the boys had trouble keeping track of the motions. It appeared to be an even match. Sandy felt helpless, as she had to stay put to keep tension on the rope and the ferrets. Squidward was stone-faced while Patrick was clearly involved. He cheered and called words of encouragement at first, but the glares from Sandy and Squidward left him silent.

Pound for pound, this was the most intense and violent fight the good guys had ever witnessed—and it seemed to go on forever.

Then, Mandy kicked Smoky back inside the sub and started to follow him, so Sandy anxiously shouted after her. "You best come out a winner, Tails!"

"I might be a while. I have to teach him a few lessons…like we did in the Family…"

They heard commotion. Punches. Kicks. Chops. War cries. Falls. Slams. Then, silence.

More silence.

Whispers.

_Screams. _

Minutes and minutes of screams later, Mandy—limping worse now and sporting a damaged suit—dragged Smoky out by the scruff of the neck. She plopped him on the ground, and he breathlessly made the announcement. "I, on behalf of the Family, vow to leave Amanda Samantha Alexandra Tails—and her kin, friends, and residences—alone for the entirety of time itself."

"And?" Mandy kicked him in the side.

"And the Red Sox are the greatest team in the universe."

"_And_?"

"And I'm sorry. We were wrong to kill your uncle, run off your family, hurt your sister, destroy half of your hometown, try to kill you, attack Bikini Bottom, capture your girlfriend, harm your friends, capture you, harmyou, and try to kill you all over again."

Mandy clapped him on the back, _hard_, and nodded to Sandy. The other ferrets were released. It was all over, but Mandy wanted to reiterate her point. So, she knelt in front of Smoky with dangerous eyes. "You tell Mr. Fluffles it's done and you uphold that. If you don't, next time will be even worse. Comprehend, my _friend_?"

Scared, Smoky could only nod. Mandy stood and fumbled over to Sandy, and she allowed the Texan to help her along this time. Squidward and Patrick followed to the vessel, which Plankton had managed to fix. SpongeBob instantly sprung to Squidward's side, hugging his tentacles.

"You were amazing, Squidward!"

At first, Squidward opened his mouth to say, _'Unhand me you annoying sponge!' _Instead, the tired octopus decided to sit down and leave the yellow guy where he was. He ignored the expressions on nearby faces and simply went with it. No reason to change something if it feels right.

Patrick decided to serve as Plankton's booster seat to help Plankton's sore back, but Plankton was quickly going crazy. He had to keep Patrick from touching buttons every few seconds.

The squirrels sat in silence for quite a while, yet Sandy couldn't get those screams out of her mind. What had happened in the wreckage of that sub? It was a completely unknown side of her girlfriend that fascinated and worried her. So, she simply had to know.

"Tails…what happened in the sub between you and that scumbag?"

"I persuaded him."

"Obviously, but how? We heard the screams."

"Do you really want to know?"

"Yeah. That's why I asked."

"I tickled him. Really, really tickled him," Mandy paused and laughed at the skeptical look on her girlfriend's face. "Look, every criminal in that organization has to be trainedto handle pain, remember? But tickling? We aren't ready to handle that."

Sandy smirked and reached to Mandy's sides. "You mean, _like this_?"

"Stop it," Mandy wheezed as the tickling continued.

Mandy didn't care that it felt like hot flames licking up her sides. She was just happy to have Sandy Cheeks beside her again, and she hoped that this would never change.

But, would they really get their happy ending?


	16. Chapter 16

_**Sixteen: A New Chapter**_

"Wrench," Mandy held her hand from beneath the floor.

Sandy plopped the wrench into her hand. "Yeah buddy. Screwdriver."

"Roger that," Mandy passed the screwdriver from her tiny nook.

After another hour of tinkering, they had finished their masterpiece. Sandy easily pulled Mandy from the compartment, now that she had completely healed from her capture four long months ago, and they stood to behold the beauty. Mandy's arm went around Sandy's waist, and they shared a proud smile.

"Here it is. Season five. Midnight Biosphere," Mandy proudly announced. "I couldn't have done it without you."

"Shucks, it was your idea, Tails. I just revised a few things."

"Please, you're the reason it came together."

While they squabbled over who should get the credit, the newest biosphere finally leveled out. It held a constant night sky that swirled with black and purple, and white stars sparkled like a summer night on the surface of rural Texas. Instead of a singular tree being the focus, there was a large wooden deck with intricate stairs and features for entertaining. Chairs, a bar, a fire pit, paper lanterns strung from posts and lit with flickering orange bulbs, and an open kitchen on the ground below—these were only some of the magnificent features.

Smaller trees were planted in careful rows with neat shrubs and sparkling rocks, but the koi pond with a tiny waterfall was the favorite natural feature between the squirrels. Fireflies lived and lit in the air, and now the temperature and winds were perfect. This was a last minute fix, and it luckily resolved itself rather quickly.

After all, the squirrels were having a housewarming party.

Well, it wasn't a _new _house. And, the party wasn't for a new _tenant _of the house either. It was a party for a new _section_ of the house, and Sandy hadn't moved in…necessarily. Actually, she had. Mostly. The Treedome still stood and she still spent some days there, as it was her personal laboratory, gym, and storage space. Yet, most of her time was within Mandy's house with her favorite gal.

It only felt right to welcome their friends into a new chapter of their lives.

So, Mandy got cooking beneath the silky light of the sky and Sandy put on some music along with her favorite Red Sox sweatshirt. Mandy had already warned everyone that country music would be the main source of entertainment, so she wasn't sure how many people would actually show up. It definitely felt amazing for both squirrels to know that secrets and threats no longer loomed over their relationship or their lives, so they had plenty of time to be themselves with each other…

And plenty of time to spend with their crazy pals.

"Dear Neptune! Look at this place!" SpongeBob cried as he appeared in the entrance. "It is so amazing. I have been so excited about seeing it! It's seriously kept me up at night."

"Me too," Patrick agreed as he emerged beside the yellow guy. "What's keeping us up at night?"

"The excitement of seeing this place," SpongeBob explained.

Patrick took a good look. "Whoa…this is so cool."

"Isn't it just?" SpongeBob nodded as he yanked his hand from behind his back. A tentacle was attached to it. "What do you think, Squidward?"

The octopus was genuinely amazed. "Wow. This is something else."

"Are you two holding hands?" Mandy teased as she flipped veggie patties on the grill.

SpongeBob tugged Squidward towards the deck. "Let's go up there! I want to see the stars better."

"_Sponges_," Squidward grumbled, though it was not an irritated noise, and allowed SpongeBob to drag him about with Patrick bounding behind them.

Soon, Pearl and Mr. Krabs arrived—Mr. Krabs bringing ingredients for Krabby Patties and a collection box for money—and the super heroes followed. Larry showed up and Mrs. Puff was close behind him. Everyone chatted and complimented the space at first, but it turned into a dinner party with a honkytonk attached.

Typically, Pearl and Larry danced together while Patrick took Sandy for a spin. SpongeBob and Mandy cooked, Squidward served, Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy slept on a cushy bench near the koi pond, and Mr. Krabs edged closer to Mrs. Puff.

"Erm…Mrs. Puff?"

"Yes, Eugene?"

"Would you…uh…like to dance?"

She paused. "With you?"

"…yeah…"

"Would I have to pay you?"

"Huh. I hadn't thought of that," he stopped at the glare on her face. "No. Of course not. This one's on me."

Grinning, she took him by the claw and the odd pair finally joined the mess of dancers. SpongeBob tapped Mandy on the shoulder. "Why don't you go dance with Sandy? I'll cook."

"Really? Great. When I get back, I'll cook and you can dance."

SpongeBob looked at Squidward, and the octopus looked away with anxious tentacles and sweat on his brow. Throughout the festivities, it didn't occur to anyone that they may get another guest. When they saw them come through the entrance, everything stopped…even the music, which was oddly convenient for the situation.

"Plankton?" Mr. Krabs growled. "You're here to steal the formula from a house party? How low is that?"

The tiny man was in essentially a hamster ball filled with water, and Karen—fully recovered and better than ever—was at his side. He defensively raised his hands. "No. No, we're here to…"

"_Plankton_," Karen urged him.

Sighing, he submitted to his wife's wishes. "We're here to thank Sandy Cheeks for saving Karen's life and helping me seek revenge on the double-crossing ferrets. So, thanks. There. I said it."

All eyes fell on Sandy and Mandy. It had taken four months to hear this from Plankton, but the word on the street was that he'd been inside with Karen and his stamp collection for most of the time. The squirrels looked at each other, and Mandy gave a tiny nod. Sandy smiled. "No problem, Plankton. Thanks for helping us get back together. You want to stay for a bit? We were gonna square dance."

"Square dance?" Plankton groaned. Karen ran into his water ball. "Right, square dancing. How charming. We can stay…_apparently_."

The party continued, and soon everyone had enough food. Sandy and Mandy took some time to perform a duet, Mandy on the violin and Sandy on guitar and vocals. After that, the couple retreated to the top of the deck for some alone time. They sat in chairs beside each other, holding hands, and they looked out at the guests. Sandy whistled in amazement. "Look. I never thought that I'd see the day this would happen…"

"Mr. Krabs and Mrs. Puff flirting? A whale and a lobster grinding on each other to Toby Keith? Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy asleep on the grass and accidentally spooning with each other? Plankton and Karen dancing alongside everyone without trying to destroy Bikini Bottom? Patrick passed out from eating more Krabby Patties than anyone on record? SpongeBob and Squidward dancing together for their fifth song?"

Sandy considered it. "Well, all of that leaves me dumbstruck. But, I meant that I never thought I'd see the day that I'd have all this. Happy friends. A great home. A wonderful girlfriend, even if she has the _worst _accent my ears have ever heard…"

"Your accent is pretty rough too, sweet cheeks."

"Ain't nowhere near as bad as yours, honey pie."

"You know you love it."

"Aw, all right. Guilty as charged. Can you promise me something?"

Mandy glanced at her serious expression with concern. "What is it, Sandy?"

"Promise me that you'll always come back no matter how many ferrets take you away."

"No one can promise that they'll always come back, but I can promise that I'll always fight a million fights to be at your side and a million more beside you."

Sandy gave her a tiny smile. "A million fights? That's _all?_"

"So, I'd fight a billion. Even a trillion or a zillion. I'd never stop fighting."

"Good. I wouldn't either."

"Would you get a room?" Squidward shouted from below them. "You two are the most repulsively adorable people in the entire sea."

Mandy playfully threw a pillow towards him while Sandy came up with a snappy retort. "Look who's talking, buddy. You're the one who's been romancing a sponge all night."

"Seriously. When's the wedding?" Mandy continued to taunt.

"Wedding?" SpongeBob wondered with wide eyes. "We're getting married?"

"You are _so dead_, Sandy and Mandy," Squidward grumbled as his face flustered.

SpongeBob's voice kept going. "Patrick can be my best man, and you can get Mr. Krabs for you! Or we can switch. No, I want Patrick on my side. We can get married in the Krusty Krab! I know just the florist for the flowers, and you already have that tuxedo…but maybe we should be in white…"

The squirrels laughed as Squidward groaned.

Yes, things were exactly how they should be in Bikini Bottom.

**The end**

_A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, followed, and read this story! I never expected this piece to actually be read by anyone, let alone receive reviews. It definitely means quite a lot. I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it! I am seriously just bursting with gratitude. _


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